The Apocalypse 3: Revenge
by Pinkamena666
Summary: The Freedom Fighters, formerly the Babylon Rogues, are back. As Jason and the others mourn Wave's death, she mysteriously comes back to life and escapes from a military base. But something's not right. She seems... evil.
1. Chapter 1

Jason quickly sat up in bed. He had just finished having a really bad nightmare and didn't feel like going back to sleep. He got out of bed and left his room. He walked past other bedrooms. The doors read; Blaze, Sonic, Tails, Silver, andJet. He walked down a flight of stairs and entered the kitchen/bar area. The kitchen area was right when you walked in through the front doors. There was a phone on the pillar beside the bar counter and two sets of stairs. One on the left and one to the right which led up to a walkway that circled the back part of the large room. The team's bedrooms were up there. If you walked past the bar area, under the walkway, you'd find yourself looking at three doors. The one on the left read "Arcade", the one on the right read, "Training Room", and the one in front of you read, "Pool". Jason sat down on one of the stools in the bar area after getting a glass of water.  
>"Jason?" Blaze asked. "Couldn't sleep?"<br>"No." Jason said, shaking his head. "I had a nightmare."  
>"About W-" Blaze stopped.<br>"Yeah." Jason said, taking a sip of water. "It's only been a day since... that fight with Mephiles and I haven't been able to stop thinking about her."  
>"These things take time." Blaze said, sitting on the stool next to him.<br>Jason quickly got up from the stool and threw his glass across the room. It shattered against the wall. "IT'S JUST NOT FAIR!" he yelled through tears. Blaze didn't say anything. "It's all my fault." Jason said, quieter. "If I hadn't..."  
>"It's not your fault, Jason." Blaze said. "You didn't know."<br>"I should've realized the hints that Mephiles was giving me. He said that if I won the fight, that I would feel more pain and suffering than I've ever felt before." He sat back down on his stool. "He was right."  
>"There's nothing else you could've done." Blaze said. "If he lived then the world would be in danger. You did the right thing."<br>"Did I?" Jason asked. "According to Mephiles, this is all part of his plan. Mekkaku, Zephiles, Wave's death, everything. I don't think the world is safe just yet." The phone rang and Jason quickly picked it up. "Yeah?"  
>"This is Officer Burke. Is this the Freedom Fighters?"<br>"Why, yes it is." Jason said. "How can we help you?"  
>"There's a group of robbers holding up a bank. They've got automatics and hostages. None of our men can do anything."<br>"Hang on." Jason said, pushing a button on the pillar. An alarm sounded. "We'll be right there." He hung up the phone and waited for the others.  
>The others soon arrived downstairs.<br>"So what's up?" Sonic asked.  
>"We've got a robbery going on. The officer in charge said they have machine-guns and hostages."<br>"Sounds like fun." Sonic said.  
>"Remember... be careful. These are people we're dealing with. They can't take as much damage as we can." Jason said.<br>"Right." Blaze said. "We must be careful not to kill or severely hurt anyone. We're Freedom Fighters. Not mercenaries."  
>"All right." Jason said. "Now that we've got that out of the way, how about we get this show on the road?"<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

"So when are we going to bury her?" one of the medics asked.  
>"General arranged for one tomorrow." the second medic answered.<br>They were at the morgue at the military base looking at one of the doors. It read, "Wave".  
>"What's so special about the bird?" the first medic asked.<br>"She was one of the Freedom Fighters."  
>"I see. Well, I'm going to bed. Don't go to bed too late. We are in the military after all."<br>"Right. See you in the morning."  
>One of the medics left the morgue, leaving the other one all by himself. He walked away from the corpse compartments and sat down in a chair. He pulled out a magazine and started reading.<br>"Wow." he said. "That is a nice car."  
>Then heard a noise coming from the back. Where the corpse compartments are. He got up from his chair and went back to investigate. The door marked "Wave" was open.<br>"What the-" he said. He pulled out his gun. He heard another noise and turned around. He slightly lowered the gun. "Who's there?" Then a figure stepped out from the shadows. "You?" the medic asked. "But... you're dead."  
>"Oh, I'm not dead." Wave said, approaching him. "At least... not yet."<br>The medic lowered his gun. "The Freedom Fighters are going to love to hear-" He stopped when Wave stepped into the light. Her skin was still gray but now her veins were dark red and visible through her skin. "What happened to you?"  
>"I don't know." Wave said. She stopped when she was right in front of the medic. Then the medic's mouth fell open and a trail of blood dripped out onto the floor. "But I like it." The medic fell to the floor.<br>Wave looked down at him. She then turned to leave, dropping the blood-stained scalpel she was holding, and walked out of the morgue.

"And we're here." Jason said, stopping the van and putting it in park.  
>The team piled out of the van and were greeted by Officer Burke.<br>"Glad you're here." he said.  
>"What can we do?" Jason asked.<br>"Go in there. Save the hostages. And stop the robbers."  
>"Well, okay." Jason said. "Give me the bullhorn."<br>Officer Burke handed him the bullhorn and Jason approached the line of Police cars outside the bank.  
>"Attention! All you people inside that are not tied up andor holding a gun, I suggest you leave the bank immediately with your hands up!"  
>Right when he finished, a shot from the bank blew the bullhorn to pieces. Jason dropped what was left of the bullhorn and spit the bullet from his mouth.<br>"Now I'm mad." Jason said. He turned to his team. "All right, guys. Here's the plan."  
>The shooter brought his gun back inside.<br>"Who was that?" one of the robbers asked.  
>"Some kid." the shooter said.<br>"A kid? What's he doing?"  
>The shooter looked back out the window. "He's approaching the bank!"<br>"Let's get him!" the third robber asked.  
>"What's he think he's doing?" the second robber asked.<br>The shooter walked to the bank's front door and opened it slightly.  
>"Hey, kid! Take one more step and I'll blow your brains out!"<br>Jason stopped halfway between the line of cop cars and the bank's entrance.  
>"You know, you talk tough!" Jason yelled. "But I bet that deep down you're a coward!"<br>"What did you say?" the shooter yelled.  
>"Only a true man wouldn't be afraid to fight me face-to-face."<br>"Why would I want to do that?" the shooter yelled. "I could just shoot you instead!"  
>The robbers inside were keeping an eye on the hostages. Jason was about ready to set the plan in motion. He moved towards the bank and the shooter started firing his machine-gun. The noise drowned out the sound of the windows breaking. Blaze and Silver jumped through and knocked the robbers unconscious. Jason caught all the bullets with psychokinesis.<br>"This kid's a freak!" the shooter yelled.  
>Jason dropped all the bullets but two and fired them at the shooter's gun, knocking it out of his hand. He tried reaching for it but Blaze stepped on it.<br>"I don't think so." she said.  
>The cops stormed the bank and arrested the three robbers and freed the hostages.<br>"Nice work, guys." Officer Burke said as Jason, Blaze, and Silver went back to the line of cop cars.  
>"Anything we can do to help." Blaze said.<br>They piled back into the van.  
>"Well, that was fun." Jason said, starting the van up.<br>"What's wrong?" Blaze asked.  
>"I just miss all the action. You know? An enemy who can actually fight back. This small-time stuff is boring."<br>"This was our first one." Blaze said. "It'll take some getting used to."  
>"You're probably right." Jason said.<br>He put the van in drive and headed back home.


	3. Chapter 3

Wave dropped down from a building rooftop into an alley. She looked at her hands.  
>"What happened?" she asked aloud.<br>"I saved you." came a voice.  
>She turned around and saw a figure in the shadows.<br>"Who are you and what do you mean?" Wave asked.  
>"My name is Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog."<br>"Well, Shadow, answer the second half of the question. How did you save me?"  
>"You really don't remember me, do you?" Shadow asked.<br>"No." Wave said. "Should I?"  
>"Yes, you should. Seeing as how I'm the one who gave you that jewel."<br>"You gave this to me?"  
>"Yes. When you were still a child. I knew you'd be needing it around this time."<br>"What are you talking about?" Wave asked.  
>"You really don't know what that jewel really is, do you?"<br>"What is it, really?" she asked.  
>"A Chaos Emerald."<br>"What?" Wave practically yelled. "This is a Chaos Emerald." she said in a softer voice.  
>"Yes." Shadow said. "You must remember the one Mekkaku sent back in time?"<br>"Yeah, I seem to remember Sonic mention that."  
>"Well, this is the one. I went back in time after, found it, and then delivered it you."<br>"Why give it to me?" Wave asked.  
>"Do you have any idea what happened in the original timeline?" Shadow asked.<br>"What happened?"  
>"You died." Shadow said. "For good."<br>"What?"  
>"In the future that I came from, after Jason killed Mephiles, you died. Because you didn't have the Emerald."<br>"So... you really did save my life."  
>"Yes. And the reason you died?"<br>"What?" Wave asked. "What's the reason?"  
>"Jason." Shadow said.<br>"Jason?" Wave asked. "He caused my death?"  
>Shadow nodded. "You tried to tell him about what Mephiles did but he didn't listen. And then he killed Mephiles which resulted in your death. Only you didn't the Emerald, so you really did die."<br>"Jason." Wave said. "I thought he cared about me. Guess I was wrong."  
>"What we need to do now is find the rest of the Emeralds. Only with all seven can you truly be alive. Right now, you're on the borderline of being dead and alive."<br>"Jason knows where they are. I'll make him tell me where they are."  
>"Good plan, Wave." Shadow said. "I'll wait here while you beat the info out of him."<br>"Right. I'll be right back." Wave said, and left.

Jason pulled the van into the garage and shut it off.  
>"We're back." Jason said, and the others left the van and went back to bed.<br>Jason was the last to leave the van. He sat down at the bar again.  
>"Oh, Wave." he said to himself. "I wish you were here right now."<br>"I am here." came a voice.  
>Jason whipped around and saw a familiar figure standing in front of the front doors. "Wave?" Jason asked, hoping for a yes.<br>Wave stepped away from the door. "Of course it's me. Who else would it be?"  
>"But I thought you were dead."<br>"Only half, Jason."  
>Wave stepped into the light and Jason saw what she looked like.<br>"You look terrible."  
>"Oh, but I feel good."<br>Wave stopped when she was a few inches from Jason. He started to get up but Wave put a hand on his shoulder and forced him back down.  
>"Where do you think you're going? You're gonna stay right there."<br>"What's going on?" Jason asked.  
>"I've been thinking about things, Jason. About my death. And the person responsible."<br>Jason started to realize what was going on.  
>"Wave, look-" He tried to get up but Wave shoved him back down. "I didn't know."<br>"Don't try to explain yourself." she said. "Look at what you did to me. Now, in order to be brought back completely, I'll need those Emeralds."  
>"What?" Jason asked. "I can't give them to you in this condition."<br>Wave grabbed him by the shirt collar and slammed him against the phone pillar.  
>"I will get the Emeralds, Jason. One way or another. Even if it means killing a few of you to get them."<br>"I don't believe that." Jason said. "You wouldn't hurt any of us."  
>Wave threw him at the front doors. The doors opened and Jason rolled across the ground. Wave walked out after him.<br>"Didn't expect that." Jason said.  
>Wave stepped on his throat. "GIVE THEM TO ME!" she yelled.<br>"Jason!" Blaze yelled from inside the headquarters.  
>Wave looked back and then down at Jason. "This isn't over." She released Jason and took off.<br>Blaze saw him and ran over. "What happened?"  
>"Wave. She's alive."<br>"Really?" Blaze asked happily. "That's great!"  
>"Yeah? I'm not really sure."<br>"Huh? What are you talking about?" she asked.  
>"Let's go back inside. I'll tell you what happened.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

"So Wave is back?" Tails asked.  
>They were seated around the bar.<br>"Yes." Jason said. "Yes, she is. Unfortunately she blamesme for her death."  
>"Can't you try talking to her?" Blaze asked.<br>"If you saw her then you would know that she's serious about this." Jason said.  
>"What does she want?" Sonic asked.<br>"She wants all of the Chaos Emeralds so she can be fully restored."  
>"Well, can't we just give them to her?" Silver asked. "She's our friend, right?"<br>"Can't." Jason said. "We don't know what shape she's in. We can't risk her using the Emeralds for anything else."  
>"Maybe she's okay," Knuckles said. "Maybe there's nothing wrong with her."<br>"She threw me through the front doors and then stepped on my neck." Jason said. "How about the part where she actually told me that she wouldn't hesitate to kill one of you to get the Emeralds."  
>"This is bad." Sonic said. "Jason. How about we train in the Training Room? Maybe you can improve my fighting skills so I'll be more useful this time."<br>"I don't have a problem with that." Jason said.

"So how'd it go?" Shadow asked.  
>"I didn't get what I needed." Wave said. "His friends showed up. I'm going back soon, though."<br>"You'd better." Shadow said. "We need those Emeralds."  
>"We found all but but two." Wave said. "I know know where the red one is. But where's the green one?"<br>"Right here."  
>Wave and Shadow looked at the end of the alley. There was someone standing there, wearing a hat, a trench coat, black goggles, and what looked like a voice changer. Whoever this was appeared to be a black hedgehog and even though the voice changer made the user's voice sound robotic-y and electronic, it sounded like a male's voice.<br>"Who are you?" Wave asked."  
>"My name is Marek."<br>"And what do you want?" Shadow asked.  
>"I have a proposition for you." Marek said. He pulled out a staff from his trench coat. It had the Green Chaos Emerald on its tip.<br>"That's the last Emerald!" Wave said.  
>"If you agree to fulfill a simple task for my master, then I will give you this Emerald." Marek said.<br>"What's the task?" Wave asked.  
>"Collect all of the Emeralds and bring them to Mexico. I'll contact you when you arrive."<br>"I don't work for anyone." Shadow said.  
>"That's okay." Marek said. "You won't be workingfor anyone. You'll have complete freedom to complete this task."<br>Shadow thought for a minute before making a decision.  
>"Fine. We'll do it." he answered.<p>

Sonic swung his sword and Jason blocked. Sonic swung again and Jason blocked.  
>"How are you so good?" Sonic asked. "What's the secret?"<br>"You have to anticipate your enemy's every move. Make your move when they're gonna make theirs."  
>Sonic zipped past Jason and swung his sword, cutting Jason's arm.<br>"Whoops." Sonic said.  
>"Eh, don't worry 'bout it." Jason said. "Barely felt it."<br>"You sure?" Sonic asked.  
>"Oh, yeah." Jason said.<br>Then an alarm sounded. Jason and Sonic ran out of the Training Room holding on to their swords.  
>"What's going on?" Jason asked, as they arrived back in the kitchen.<br>"There's trouble at the Museum Of Natural History." Blaze said, hanging up the phone.  
>"Well, then." Jason said. "Time to go."<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

They arrived at the museum and got out of the van. There were people running out of the museum. Some were screaming about something demonic inside. Others were shouting that the museum was haunted.  
>"Must be the place." Jet said. "What's the plan?"<br>"In order to have a plan," Jason said. "You must first know the situation."  
>They entered the museum just as the last person ran out. They had the whole museum to themselves... and to whatever was inside.<br>"Hello!" Sonic yelled. "Any demons in here?"  
>No answer.<br>"You really expected that to work.?" Blaze asked.  
>"Heh. Not really." Sonic said.<br>The entered a room filled with skeletal dinosaurs.  
>"Hey!" came a familiar voice. "You made it!"<br>Wave jumped down from the T-Rex head and landed in front of the group.  
>"It's true." Blaze gasped.<br>"Hey, guys." Wave said.  
>"Wave!" Tails said happily. Then he got a good look at her. "You look terrible."<br>"We have our brave hero here to thank for it." Wave said, eying Jason.  
>"Look," Jason said. "It wasn't my fault."<br>"Of course it wasn't." Wave said. "If it wasn't for this Emerald, I'd be dead, no thanks to you."  
>"Emerald?" Jason asked.<br>Wave held up the jewel on her necklace. "I just found out that that's what this is. If I didn't have this, I'd be dead right now."  
>"Wave..." Jason started. "I'm-"<br>"Enough talking." Wave said, kicking Jason in the stomach. He fell backwards, knocking over Sonic and Knuckles. "More fighting."  
>"Wave," Blaze said. "Don't do this."<br>Wave threw a punch and Blaze blocked. She then grabbed Blaze's wrist and threw her out the window. Wave jumped out after her. Blaze stood up in the street and noticed a car coming. She moved out of the way right when it zipped past. Wave approached.  
>"Don't make me do this, Wave!" Blaze yelled.<br>Wave didn't stop. Blaze launched fireballs at her. Wave held out her hand and a sword formed in it. She blocked the incoming fireballs.  
>"Where'd you get that sword?" Blaze asked.<br>"I guess I must still have some of Mephiles' DNA inside me. That means I still have my dark powers from before."  
>"This isn't good." Blaze said.<br>"Not for you." Wave said. "But for me, it rocks!"  
>She raised her sword and brought it down in an attempt to chop Blaze. Jason slid past Wave and blocked her attack. Jason stood up and looked at Wave.<br>"Well, well, well." Wave said.  
>"Stop this." Jason said.<br>"I don't think so."  
>Wave started launching attacks and Jason blocked them all. Sonic sped up behind Wave and tried to attack. Wave kicked him back and another sword formed in her other hand. She was now fighting Jason and Sonic. Sonic launched a flurry of attacks and so did Jason, but Wave kept on blocking. When they stopped attacking, Wave jumped in the air and kicked them both over.<br>"You guys are so weak." she said.  
>Sonic stood up and tried to strike Wave but Wave stepped out of the way and swung her her swords, cutting Sonic's arms and part of his back. He let out a yell of pain before falling to his knees.<br>"You've gone to far." Jason said.  
>He quickly stood up and punched Wave in the face as hard as he could. She stumbled backwards and put her hand on her cheek. She looked at her fingers and saw blood.<br>"Wow, Jason." Wave said. "I'm impressed. You actually hit me."  
>"You're not yourself." Jason said. "I put my team before anything else. When you hurt one of my teammates, you're askin' for it."<br>"Hmm." was all Wave said,  
>She didn't pay any attention to the cut on her cheek, which was bleeding a little. Looking at her like this made Jason upset. He hated to see her hurt but he had no choice.<br>"Wave." Jason said. "Please stop. I don't like hurting you."  
>"Too bad." she said.<br>She launched another attack with both of her swords. Jason blocked some of them with his sword and dodged the others. Both Wave and Jason swung a sword at each other. Jason's sword cutting Wave's arm and Wave's sword cutting Jason's leg. The two fell to their knees.  
>"This is getting us nowhere." Jason said.<br>"You will give me the Emeralds, Jason. One way or the other."  
>"Not like this." Jason said. "Not when you're inthis condition. Who knows what you'd do once you got your hands on them."<br>"That's none of your business." Wave said. "But if you refuse, I'll just have to kill you."  
>She slowly got up and walked over to Jason. She raised her sword. Right when she was going to attack, the Freedom Fighters' van came out of nowhere and swerved, knocking Wave away from Jason. The front passenger side door opened.<br>"Get in!" Blaze said.  
>Jason got Sonic and piled into the van.<br>"Step on it!" Jason said.

Blaze stopped the van right before it was going to hit the garage wall and everyone got out quickly. They all started to run upstairs.  
>"JASON!" They all stopped and turned to the front doors. Wave was standing there. She had cuts all over her. Some blood was smeared on her arms and legs. "WE'RE NOT FINISHED!"<br>Wave launched a dark energy sphere at Jason, knocking him away from the group. Wave ran for him, both swords out, making a screeching noise as they scraped the metallic floor. Jason rolled out of the way as Wave thrusted her sword into the floor. Jason kicked the sword as hard as he could and the sword vaporized into a cloud of smoke. Since Wave was using the sword as support, she fell to the floor. Her and Jason quickly stood up. Wave swung her sword at Jason's neck but Jason held his sword up, blocking it. He went for an attack and so did Wave. Jason's attack was harder and knocked Wave's sword out of her hands. Not meaning to, Jason's sword cut Wave's hand and formed a line across her legs. More cuts to add to her collection. She fell to her knees, breathing hard. Jason threw his sword aside. Wave looked up at him and her sword disappeared in a cloud of smoke.  
>"This isn't over." she said.<br>"I know." Jason said.  
>Wave slowly got to her feet and made her way out the front door. Jason watched as she left, with an urge to make sure she was alright but remembered she was evil. Then he thought, what the heck, and went after her. Wave stumbled down the front steps and fell to her knees.<br>"You okay?" Jason asked, kneeling down next to her.  
>"What do you care." she said. She slowly got to her feet. "Now back off, Jason. We're enemies, remember?"<br>She walked away, clutching her left arm, leaving Jason behind to think about things.


	6. Chapter 6

Jason stepped outside. It's been five hours since Wave attacked and the team was ready for a break.  
>"So, how's about a hike through the forest?" Jason suggested.<br>"Sounds good." Blaze said.  
>"Yeah." Sonic said. "I could use a break."<br>So the team got into the van and drove to the forest where they found the cave. They got out of the van and hiked through the forest.  
>"It's hot out, isn't it?" asked Tails.<br>"It's almost Summer." Jason said. "Of course it's gonna be hot."  
>They came to a clearing in the forest.<br>"This looks like a good place to rest." Jason said.  
>"I'm gonna go look for wood." Tails said.<br>"Wood?" Jason asked.  
>"For the fire." Tails said. "It's getting dark soon. Wouldn't it be cool to spend the night in the wilderness?"<br>"I guess." Jason said. "Just be careful."  
>"I will." Tails said.<br>He headed off into the woods to look for logs. He found a lot of twigs. The larger ones he got. He had gone about six feet from the group when he ran into someone. It was Wave again. Her cuts had stopped bleeding but were still visible. She picked him up by the neck and pinned him against a tree, feet dangling.  
>"How's it going, shorty?" she asked with a grin.<br>Tails took one of the sticks he was holding and rammed the tip into Wave's hand. It didn't go through but was enough to make her let go. Tails ran away from her, which was, unfortunately, the opposite direction of the campground. Wave went after him.  
>"JASON!" Tails yelled. "SONIC! HELP!"<br>"Did you hear something?" Jason asked Sonic. "It sounded like..."  
>"Tails." they said together.<br>They took off into the forest after Tails' voice.  
>Wave picked up a stick and threw it at Tails. It hit his legs, making him trip. He fell to the ground, turned around, and started crawling backwards away from Wave.<br>"HELP!" he yelled.  
>Wave grabbed him by the throat again and pinned him against another tree.<br>"Let's try this again." Wave said.  
>She raised her hand to attack but stopped when something caught her eye.<br>"No." she said softly. "It can't be."  
>Sonic found Tails first. "What happened?"<br>"It was Wave again." Tails said.  
>"Where'd she go?" Sonic asked.<br>Tails pointed behind him.  
>"Wait right here." Sonic said.<br>"Hang on." Jason said, walking past him. "I'll go after Wave. You make sure Tails is okay."  
>"You got it." Sonic said. "Be careful."<br>Jason walked a bit and found Wave standing in front of a small lake. He walked up right next to her only she didn't try to attack.  
>"Something's wrong." Jason said, looking out at the lake.<br>"What're you talking about?" Wave asked.  
>"Well, you're not attacking me for starters. And you look a little depressed." Wave didn't say anything. "What's wrong? You can still talk to me."<br>Wave sighed. "It happened right here."  
>"What happened?" Jason asked.<br>"This is where I was when..." She paused. "when my parents were murdered." Jason looked at her with a sympathetic look. "I was 8 years old and came here, to my usual spot, for a swim. Everything was going fine... until..." She stopped, put a hand to her forehead, and shut her eyes tightly.  
>"Until?"<br>"Until our house blew up!" she said opening her eyes and removing her hand. She was starting to cry.  
>"Oh." Jason said. "Right."<br>Wave was beginning to cry.  
>"Hey..." Jason said, putting a hand on her shoulder.<br>"STOP IT, JASON!" she yelled, pulling away. "STOP PLAYING WITH MY FEELINGS! YOU KILLED ME! IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! AND NEXT TIME WE MEET, YOU BETTER BE READY TO FIGHT!"  
>She walked away, crying. This time, Jason didn't go after her. He headed back to where he and Sonic found Tails.<br>"What was that all about?" Sonic asked. "Did you get her mad or something?"  
>"I'll tell you later." Jason said. "I'll be right back."<p>

Wave laid down on a rooftop, thinking about what just happened. She closed her eyes to go to sleep and had a flashback about her past...  
>"I'm going to go swim in the lake." Wave yelled back into the house.<br>"Okay!" her mom said. "Don't be long!"  
>"I won't!"<br>Wave headed away from her home-tree and made her way to the small lake. She set her towel down under a tree and jumped into the lake. She did backstrokes, breaststrokes, and then just floated on her back. She dove under and then popped back up. Just then she heard an explosion and saw her home on fire.  
>"NO!" she yelled."<br>She closed her eyes.  
>She opened them and saw that she was back on the rooftop. She was about to go back to sleep when she saw Jason's sweatshirt on top of her like a blanket. She looked at it for another second and then dozed off again.<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

They got back to headquarters around 7:00 in the morning.  
>"Well, that was fun." Blaze said.<br>"Yeah." Tails said sarcastically. "It was great. Except for the incident with Wave."  
>"I'll find a way." Jason said, shutting off the engine.<br>They all got inside and Jason turned on the TV in the bar.  
>"...bigger news today. The home of the recently-popular Jason Bower, the super teen who was last seen fighting by the museum, was found in flames." Jason was glued to the TV, as were the others. "Causes of the fire are not quite known, only that his mother, sadly enough, did not make it out. There will be a..." Jason shut off the TV.<br>"Jason." Blaze said. "I'm-"  
>"Sorry." Jason finished. "Yeah, Blaze. I know." He slammed his fist down on the counter top. "First Blaze and now my own mother!"<br>"Times are rough, Jason." Blaze said. "This is when we need to try our hardest to pull through."  
>"My mom is DEAD, BLAZE!" Jason yelled.<br>He looked at the others and then went to his room and cried himself to sleep.

Later that day, Jason went up to a rooftop overlooking the church. They were having the funeral for his mom.  
>"Boo-hoo, Jason." Wave said. Jason turned around. "You're mother's dead. So what? You just gonna cry about it?" She was holding his sweatshirt. "By the way, you can have your sweatshirt back." she said, throwing it at him. He caught it.<br>"Listen, Wave. Just because you don't care about your parents doesn't mean I don't care about mine."  
>"What did you say?" Wave asked, angrily.<br>"Why are you implying that having no mother is no big deal. You obviously don't care about them."  
>"Don't care? I loved my parents!" Wave yelled. "They were everything to me."<br>"Well maybe I feel the same way." Jason said, putting on his sweatshirt/hoodie.  
>Jason just stood, staring at Wave.<br>"What?" she asked.  
>"Well, are we gonna fight, or not?"<br>Wave smiled. "Not now. But soon. Very soon."  
>"I'll be waiting." Jason said.<br>Wave turned to leave. "I'm sure you will."  
>She jumped off the roof. Jason turned back to the church. He jumped down and made his way to the front doors. When he walked through them, everyone turned to look at him. He made his way to the front, ignoring the stares. He got to the coffin and stopped. The coffin was closed for obvious reasons. He put a hand on the coffin and stopped himself from crying. He picked up his hand and clenched it into a fist. He clenched it so tight that if anything was inside, it's be crushed to dust. He turned around and stormed out of the doors.<p>

Jason burst through the front doors of Freedom Fighters Headquarters.  
>"Whatcha doin'?" Blaze asked.<br>"I'm going back home." Jason said. "I'm gonna find out what happened to cause the fire."  
>"You suspect foul play?" Blaze asked.<br>"I suspect that I have enemies who will do everything they can to tear me down." Jason said.  
>He went to his room, got his E-Gear, and went out the front door. Blaze followed, letting the others know where they were going first.<p> 


	8. Chapter 8

Jason and Blaze arrived at Jason's old house. It was completely burned down. Only a little of the foundation was left. The rest of the house either burned to ash or ended up in the basement.  
>"This is terrible." Blaze said.<br>"You're telling me." Jason said.  
>He walked over to the woods next to the house and knelt down.<br>"Find something?" Blaze asked.  
>"There's footprints here." Jason said. "Leading to and from the house." He stood up. "I was right. This wasn't an accident. This was on purpose."<br>"What are you gonna do now?" Blaze asked.  
>"I'm gonna find out who did it." Jason said. "Then I'm gonna kill 'em."<p>

Shadow sat on a box and held out the Green Chaos Emerald. The reflection of the Emerald shown in his eyes.  
>"Here you are." Wave said, entering the empty warehouse.<br>"Did you find out yet?" Shadow asked, not taking his eyes of the Emerald.  
>"No." Wave said with an annoyed sigh. "Not yet."<br>"Do you plan on starting soon? Marek's waiting, you know?"  
>"I know." Wave said. "But I thought you didn't work for anyone. Why do you care if we're late or not?"<br>Shadow set the Emerald down on the box and got up.  
>"I do work alone." Shadow said. "But I've waiting for an opportunity like this and I'm not gonna pass it up."<br>"Right." Wave said. "Well, Jason and Blaze went to his house to investigate the fire."  
>"Ah, the one that claimed his mom's life, is it?"<br>Wave nodded.  
>"This is perfect."<br>"How so?" Wave asked.  
>"Go to their headquarters and beat the info out of the others." Shadow ordered. "Without Jason or Blaze around, they're sure to give in."<br>"I hear you." Wave said, and left.

"When's Jason and Blaze getting back?" Tails asked.  
>They were seated at the kitchen table.<br>"Not sure." Jet said. "Could be another hour."  
>Then they heard a familiar laugh. They turned to the front doors. It was Wave again.<br>"An hour?" she asked. "That's perfect." she said, approaching the table. Sonic and Knuckles quickly got up. "Whoa, whoa, whoa." Wave said. "Where ya goin'?" Sonic and Knuckles didn't move. "I just wanna talk." She sat down in the empty seat in between Silver and Tails, who was keeping a cautious eye on her.  
>Sonic and Knuckles both sat back down.<br>"What do you want to talk about?" Sonic asked.  
>"I think you know what I want." she said. "Your precious Emeralds."<br>"If Jason didn't trust you," Sonic said, crossing his arms. "why should we?"  
>"I was hoping you'd be smarter." Wave said. "Or else something bad might happen."<br>"If you try anything-" Sonic started.  
>"You'll what?" Wave said. Sonic said nothing. "I could kill you all right now if I wanted."<br>"Just try it!" Knuckles said, getting up.  
>"Ah, ah, ah." Wave said, pointing a finger at him, palm up. There was a small sphere of dark energy at the tip of her finger. "Down, boy." she said. Knuckles sat back down. "Here's how this is gonna work..." Wave said. "I'm gonna ask you a question. Answer it right and nothing happens. Answer it wrong or not at all... well... use your imagination."<br>"What makes you think we'll cooperate?" Silver asked.  
>Wave whipped around and grabbed him by the throat.<br>"Because if you don't, I'll crush you right here, right now."  
>"All right." Sonic said. "We'll do it."<br>"Don't tell her anything, Sonic." Silver said.  
>"Well, well, well." Wave said. "Looks like we've got ourselves a hero."<br>She stood up and threw him over the table. He hit the ground in front of the hallway that led to the pool. Wave jumped over the table and headed for him. Sonic got up and zipped in front of Wave, holding his sword.  
>"Not so fast, Wave." he said.<br>"You think you can take me on?" Wave asked.  
>Sonic held up his sword. "You bet I can."<br>Wave's sword formed in her hand. "I don't think so."  
>She swung at Sonic, but he blocked. He then tried to counter with an upper-cut but Wave grabbed his fist and slammed him into the floor. She pulled back her sword to try to impale him but he rolled out of the way. Her sword stabbed the floor. He kicked the sword out of her hands and swung his sword. She dodged the attack and shot him with a dark energy blast. He flew down the hallway and landed in front of the door marked, "Training Room". He looked at the sign and then entered the room. Wave retrieved her sword and went in after him. The others ran over to see if they could help. Sonic pressed his hand on the touch screen inside the room. "User ID: Sonic" the computer said. The training room started to shift. Ramps appeared as did loop-the-loops, springs, and robots. Sonic jumped onto one of the springs and landed on top of one of the loop-the-loops. Wave jumped up and landed in front of him.<br>"You have some kind of plan?" Wave asked.  
>"You mean a plan to defeat you?" he asked. "Yeah."<br>"Good luck." she said.  
>Sonic rushed at her but she jumped over him. He fell of the other side and landed on the floor. He looked up and saw Wave about to jump down after him. When she landed, Sonic went full speed, running around the room using the loop-the-loops and springs. He was practically a blur. Wave could hardly keep up with his movements.<br>"You can't beat me when you're fighting in my territory." Sonic said.  
>"You're forgetting one thing." Wave said.<br>"Oh, yeah?" Sonic asked. "What's that?"  
>"You're not the only one here."<br>Wave shot a powerful dark energy blast at the group that was gathered at the door. It collided with the floor, sending out a ripple that damaged those nearest to it and cause them all to fall over. She launched another dark energy sphere that hit Tails.  
>"No!" Sonic said.<br>He stopped running and went over to help.  
>"All too easy." Wave said.<br>She fired a shot at Sonic. He wasn't paying attention so he had no time to dodge it. The impact sent him slamming into the wall besides the exit. Wave walked up to Tails and held him against the wall.  
>"Tell me what I want to know or the fox gets it."<br>"You don't... have it in you." Silver said.  
>"Oh, don't I?" she said. Her sword appeared in her hands. She pulled back the sword, ready to strike. "Wanna see how far I can take this?" she asked. "I got no problem killing Tails. There's four more of you."<br>"Fine." Sonic said. "Just don't hurt Tails."  
>Wave smiled and her sword disappeared. "That's more like it. Now where's the Emeralds? And don't lie because if I go looking and don't find any Emeralds, I'm gonna hunt you down and kill you all."<br>"We split them up." Sonic answered. "We put each one in a different location. The general has one. Another's in the bank vaults There's one in the Mojave Desert. We put one in a temple in the Amazon and the last one we found is in the Bermuda Triangle."  
>"Thanks." Wave said. "You've been most helpful." She threw Tails at Sonic and left Freedom Fighters HQ.<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

Jason and Blazed arrived back at headquarters to find their team on the floor. They ran to help them out.  
>"What happened?" Blaze asked, worried.<br>"It was Wave." Sonic said, helping Tails up. "She knows about the Emeralds."  
>"What?" Jason yelled. "How?"<br>"I had to tell her." Sonic explained. "She was going to kill Tails."  
>"You've got to be kidding me!" Jason yelled.<br>"Jason, I'm sorry." Sonic apologized.  
>Jason let out a sigh. "It's all right, Sonic. You did what you had to do."<br>"What do we do now?" Jet asked.  
>"We retrieve the Emeralds first."<p>

Wave entered the warehouse and found Shadow waiting for her. He was sitting on top of a pile of boxes.  
>"I got it." Wave said happily.<br>"Well done." Shadow said. "Now all we have to do is get them. Where are they?"  
>"Everywhere." Wave said. "One's in the Mojave Desert. One's in the Amazon. Another's at the Bermuda Triangle. There's one at the bank and the last one is with the general."<br>"The general?" Shadow asked.  
>"The one that hired Jason and his friends."<br>"I see." Shadow said. "You go get that one. When you return, we'll go after the bank Emerald together."  
>"You got it." Wave said.<br>"What have you found?" came a voice.  
>Shadow and Wave looked at the entrance. It was Marek.<br>"We found the location of the Emeralds." Wave said. "I was just going to go get one."  
>"Well, be quick." Marek said, turning to leave. "We don't have forever." With that, Marek left.<br>Wave looked at Shadow and then left, too.

Meanwhile, Jason and the others were flying towards the general's last known base of operations.  
>"You sure that she'll go there first?" Tails asked.<br>"It's one of the closest ones." Jason said. "That and the bank."  
>"Want me to go protect the one at the bank?" Blaze asked.<br>Jason thought about it for a minute.  
>"Sure. Why don't you take Jet and Knuckles." Jason suggested. "We'll meet back at headquarters if anything happens."<br>"You got it." Jet said.  
>"I hope she comes to us first." Knuckles said.<br>They started to fly off.  
>"Remember..." Jason said.<br>"Yeah, we know." Blaze shouted back. "We'll try not to kill her."  
>Now it was just Jason, Tails, Sonic, and Silver. They continued flying for a little until Jason spotted Wave.<br>"Good." Jason said. "She hasn't made it to the base yet."  
>"Should we stop her?" Silver asked.<br>"You go on to the military base." Jason said. "I'll try to stop her."  
>"Be careful." Silver said.<br>Jason grabbed his E-Gear with one hand and slid off. He fell to the ground 30 feet below and landed in front of Wave. She stopped walking.  
>"Well, well, if it isn't Jason." Wave said. "You're really starting to get on my nerves."<br>"Stop this, now." Jason said. "You've gone way too far. Fighting me is one thing, but attacking Tails is another. That's a new low, Wave."  
>Wave smiled. Not a nice smile but more of an evil grin.<br>"So, I guess you've finally realized how serious I am?"  
>"Oh, Wave." Jason said. "I remember back when you were nice and innocent. Now look at you."<br>"Don't try to play with my feelings, Jason." Wave said. "We already went through this in the forest."  
>"I'm just trying to help you remember who your friends are before you end up killing them all."<br>"My friends?" Wave laughed. "I tried the whole friendship thing with you, Jason, and look what happened to me."  
>"Must you keep bringing that up?"<br>"Yes." Wave said. "Until you finally get it through your head."  
>"Fine." Jason said. "All right. I get it."<br>"Good."  
>Jason pulled out his sword. "Then I guess there's only one thing left to do."<br>"Oh, yeah?" Wave asked, not moving. "And what's that?"  
>"If what you say is true," Jason said. "than you're already lost."<br>"Oh, I'm not lost." Wave said, summoning her sword. "I've found my purpose."


	10. Chapter 10

"Sure you don't wanna back down?" Jason asked.  
>"Sure you don't?" Wave asked.<br>She ran at Jason and swung her sword. Jason blocked and slid under her, kicking her in the back. She stumbled forward and turned around. She shoved her sword forward at Jason but missed. Jason grabbed her wrist, pulled her to him, and elbowed her in the face.  
>"Nice to see that you're putting up a fight, Jason."<br>"I asked you if you wanted to back down."  
>"You're gonna wish you had."<br>She dropped to the ground, escaping Jason's grasp and popping up behind him. Before he could react, she kicked him the back and he fell to the floor. He rolled onto his back and looked up at her. She stood above him.  
>"How about you give up and let me continue on to the Emerald?" Wave asked.<br>"That's not gonna happen." Jason said.  
>"Why not?" she asked. "You know you can't kill me."<br>"So?"  
>"Killing me is the only way you're gonna stop me."<br>"I hope you're wrong about that, Wave."  
>"Oh, yeah? Why is that?"<br>"Because I am gonna stop you. One way or the other. And if that means killing you... than I'll kill ya."  
>Wave let out a chuckle. "Who are ya kiddin', Jason? You don't have what it takes to kill me."<br>"Maybe not."  
>Jason shot up, pulled back his sword, and stabbed Wave in the shoulder. He pushed her against the side of the building and the sword dug deep into the wall, pinning Wave. She let out a scream.<br>"I... I can't believe you did that." Wave said, looking at the sword in her shoulder.  
>"Wave, I'm sorry." Jason said. "But you weren't giving me a whole lot of options."<br>"That's the worst excuse I've ever heard." Wave said, looking up at him. "So what are you gonna do now?" she asked. "You gonna finish the job?"  
>Jason looked into her eyes for a minute and then said, "No."<br>Wave smiled. "So wrapped up in your feelings that you fail to do what is necessary."  
>"My feelings is what's keeping you alive, Wave." Jason said. "If I didn't like you, you'd be dead. Believe me."<br>"Oh, I believe you." she said. "I believe you."  
>She blasted Jason with dark energy, sending him flying into the wall across from Wave. She grabbed the sword by the handle and pulled as hard as she could. The sword left her shoulder and she let out another cry of pain before dropping to her knees. Then she threw the sword aside and slowly got to her feet.<br>"Now back to the Emerald." she said, mainly to herself.  
>She made her way to the military base, holding her shoulder. Jason regained consciousness and got up. He looked around and didn't see Wave. He headed to the military base to regroup with the others.<p> 


	11. Chapter 11

Wave got to the military base and ran into Sonic, Tails, and Silver.  
>"Look who it is." Sonic said.<br>"Wave!" Tails said. "Uh..."  
>"Enough!" Wave yelled. "Now, where's the Emerald?" she yelled at Sonic. "You said it was here!"<br>"No." Sonic said. "I said it was at the military base. They must've changed locations."  
>Wave screamed in anger, scaring Tails.<br>"THAT'S IT!" Wave screamed. "I'VE HAD IT! There's only one thing left to do, now."  
>"Oh, yeah?" Silver asked. "What's that?"<br>When Jason got there, he found Sonic and Silver getting up from the ground. It looked like they lost a fight. Jason ran over to help them.  
>"What happened?" Jason asked.<br>"Wave happened." Sonic said, standing up. "She beat us up, knocked out Tails, and carried him off somewhere."  
>"This is getting crazy." Jason said. "I never thought I'd end up here. All my years in school... I just can't believe this is happening. Oh, god."<br>"What?" Sonic asked.  
>"I..." Jason started. "I... stabbed her."<br>"You stabbed her?" Silver asked, surprised. "You actually stabbed her?"  
>"In the shoulder. I had no choice. She just wouldn't stop."<br>"How hard was it to do?" Sonic asked.  
>"Extremely." Jason answered. "We have to fix this. Ihave to fix this. I don't know if I have what it takes to finish her if that's what it comes down to."<br>"It won't." Sonic said. "There's still hope."  
>"I'm not going to give up." Silver said. "She's my friend, too."<br>"Thanks, Silver." Jason said. "Now we have to find Wave and get Tails back."  
>"I just hope he's okay." Sonic said.<br>"Would she really hurt him?" Silver asked.  
>"People do crazy things when their desperate." Jason said. "If she really wants the Emeralds, then she'll do whatever it takes to get them."<br>"Then let's go." Sonic said. "Tails is like a brother to me. I'm not gonna let anything happen to him."  
>"That's funny." Jason said. "That's the same thing I promised Wave."<p> 


	12. Chapter 12

Tails opened his eyes. Everything was blurry.  
>"Where am I?" he asked, hoping someone would answer.<br>"Where you are is not important." Wave said. "Where you will be is."  
>"Wave?" Tails asked, scared.<br>He tried to move but couldn't. He was tied to a box on the floor.  
>"No use struggling, shorty." Wave said. "Even if you could break free you don't know where you are."<br>"What do you want?" he asked.  
>He was starting to get his vision back. Wave knelt down in front of him. Tails looked down at the floor.<br>"You're gonna lead me to the Emeralds." she said.  
>"What makes you think I'll betray my friends?" Tails asked, still not looking at her.<br>"Because your cooperation ensures your freedom." Wave said.  
>"What?" Tails asked.<br>"Until you help me find the Emeralds, you're mine."  
>"And what if I don't?" Tails asked. "What are you going to do to me?"<br>"Do you really want to know?" she asked.  
>"I don't think you'd really hurt me." Tails said. "We were friends once. That kind of connection doesn't just go away."<br>"You know, you're partly right." Wave said. "That connection is why you're still alive. How long you stayalive is up to you."  
>"You wouldn't."<br>"Oh?" she asked, placing her hand on his shoulder. "I wouldn't?" She ran her hand halfway down his arm and then gripped it hard. Tails let out a scream.  
>"Does that hurt?" Wave asked, squeezing harder. Tails didn't answer, only screamed in pain again. "You want me to stop?"<br>"Yes." Tails said through clenched teeth.  
>"What?" Wave asked. "I couldn't hear you."<br>"YES!" Tails screamed, desperate for her to stop.  
>She released her grip on his arm and stood up.<br>"Good." she said.  
>She summoned her sword and cut the rope, releasing Tails. He stood up and gripped his arm with his other hand. Wave's sword disappeared again.<br>"Now move it." she ordered.  
>"We're going now?" Tails asked.<br>"Of course. The sooner the better."

Jason, Sonic, and Silver went back to the skies on their way to the next possible location for the military base.  
>"How come the army has to be so secretive?" Silver asked. "It's making our job harder."<br>"True." Jason said. "But it's also making Wave's job just as hard."  
>"But now she has Tails." Sonic said.<br>"Don't worry." Jason said. "We'll get him back."

The general sat down in his seat and looked over the paperwork on his desk. He heard a thump outside and reached for his gun. Just then Wave burst through the door.  
>"So..." Wave said. "Shorty was telling the truth."<br>"I told you." Tails said, walking in after her.  
>"You two?" the general asked.<br>"What's the matter?" Wave asked. "Not happy to see us?"  
>"Well, you're supposed to be dead."<br>"And here I am." Wave said. "Now to get down to business."  
>"Why are you here?" he asked.<br>"I want the Emerald that Jason gave to you to protect."  
>"He said to only return it if he asked for it. No one else."<br>"Here." Wave said, summoning her sword and pointing the tip at the general's neck. "Give me the Emerald or die."  
>The general looked over at Tails. "You've gone mad. You two are in big trouble."<br>"Oh, don't blame the fox." Wave said. "He's in this against his own will. Now the Emerald."  
>"It's in bunker #5." the general said.<br>"Have someone bring it here." Wave said, putting her sword away. "And don't try anything, or I will kill you."  
>The general picked up a walkie-talkie.<br>"This is General Hanson. Bring the Emerald."  
>"Right away, sir." the voice on the other side said.<br>A minute or two later a soldier walked through the open doorway. He saw Tails standing next to General Hanson. Before he could survey the rest of the room, Wave whacked him on the back of the neck, knocking him out. She knelt down and picked up the White Emerald.  
>"Three down." Wave said. "Four more to go."<br>Tails saw this as an opportunity and took off out the door. Wave stood up and went after him. General Hanson hit a button under his desk and an alarm sounded throughout the base. By the time Wave got outside, the bunkers all had military personnel protecting them. A few were running out to the center where Wave was. They couldn't get there in time. Wave had already made it across. Tails ran into a nearby empty building. From the looks off it, it was a convenient store. It was dark and he could hardly see. He felt around until he felt someone's leg.  
>"Uh, oh." he said.<br>"Uh, oh is right." Wave said, picking him up by the neck and throwing him out the door. "You made a big mistake, shorty. You must be punished." She started to approach him.  
>"Please." Tails pleaded. "It won't happen again."<br>"See that it doesn't." she said walking past him and stopping. She held up the Emerald. "Now onto the bank."


	13. Chapter 13

"That's the second base we've been to that was empty." Sonic said. "It's getting old."  
>"Well, let's hope that the next one's the right one." Jason said.<br>Jason, Sonic, and Silver arrived at the military base to find an alarm blaring and military personnel running everywhere. They landed and approached the military base.  
>"Guess this is the place." Silver said.<br>"Halt!" one of the soldiers yelled, running up to them. "Oh. It's you." he said when he saw it was Jason. "The general wants to see you."  
>Jason entered the room through the open doorway. General Hanson was standing in front of his desk.<br>"We've got a problem." he said. "It seems that the bird wasn't dead after all. She came back and took the Emerald."  
>"Did she have Tails with her?" Sonic asked.<br>"The fox? Yes. I last saw him running out the door with the bird not far behind."  
>"Her name..." Jason said. "is Wave. All right? Not 'the bird'."<br>"Sorry. Wave ran after him out that door. Not sure what happened after." Hanson said.  
>"So she still needs to find six more." Silver said.<br>"But we only know of five." Jason said. "What if she's found the other two already?"  
>"Impossible." Sonic said. "Mekka sent the red on back in time, remember?"<br>"If there's one thing I've learned in all my experiences with you guys is that nothing's impossible." Jason said. "I mean, Silver here is from the future."  
>"You've got a point." Sonic said.<br>"So let's assume she has three Emeralds, then." Silver said. "Now what?"  
>"We go to the bank." Jason said.<p>

When they got to the bank, they found Blaze, Jet, and Knuckles waiting.  
>"Anything yet?" Jason asked.<br>"Nope." Blaze said.  
>"Nothing." Knuckles said. "Lots of nothing."<br>"I wonder what's taking her so long." Jason said.

"Wave? Can I help you?" the guard asked, standing by a large metal door.  
>"Yeah." Wave said. "You can help me by taking me to the vault."<br>"The vault?" the guard asked. "I'm sorry, but that's off-limits."  
>Just then Shadow emerged from the shadows. "I'd show us the vault if I were you. We wouldn't want any unnecessary accidents."<br>Wave grabbed the guard by his shirt collar. "Take us there. Right now."  
>"I can't." the guard said.<br>Just then a sword formed in Wave's hand. "Last chance."  
>The guard entered the combination into a panel on the wall next to the door. It opened and Shadow entered.<br>"Wave!"  
>Wave turned around.<br>"Jason." Wave said. "And Sonic and Silver. I had a feeling you'd show up." she said.  
>"Let him go, Wave." Jason said.<br>"As you wish."  
>She threw the guard across the room and he slammed into the wall.<br>"Wave! You just-"  
>"He'd get in the way."<br>Jason started to run for the vault but Wave grabbed him and pinned him against the wall.  
>"You're not going anywhere."<br>She released him.  
>"What's happened to you? Why are you acting like this?"<br>"You don't remember? In the city, after the fight with Zephiles, you shot me."  
>"I remember. I'm sorry."<br>"You're sorry? Sorry for killing me? Well, apology not  
>accepted."<br>"Wave. You have to stop. What would your parents think?"  
>"Jason. You're a nice guy, and I like you. But if you ever mention my parents again… I'll kill you."<br>"You sure about that?" Jason asked.  
>"Oh yeah." Wave said<br>"Hmm."  
>"Let's take a walk." Wave said, catching Jason off guard.<br>"A walk?" Jason asked. "Uh, okay. I guess."  
>Wave released her grip on his neck. "Then, let's go."<br>"Make sure no one enters the vault." Jason told Sonic as he walked past him. "We have to keep the Emerald safe."  
>"You can count on us." Sonic said.<br>"Yeah." Silver said. "No problem."


	14. Chapter 14

"So why are we going for a walk?" Jason asked.  
>"Just to talk." Wave said. "Just like old times."<br>"It just seems weird that you're not trying to kill me right now."  
>"You know, I'm not like I was when I was with Mephiles." Wave said. "I can control myself."<br>"Well, that's a relief." Jason said.  
>"I know there's more to life than killing and destruction." Wave said. "Which is why I asked you if you wanted to take a break from fighting and go for a walk."<br>"Oh." Jason said. He wasn't sure what else to say.  
>"Not in the mood to talk all of a sudden?" Wave asked.<br>"It's not that." Jason said. "It's just that most of the time when I try to talk to you, you end up almost killing me."  
>"Then try saying things that don't involve my parents." Wave suggested. "And stop saying things that may try to mess with mu feelings. I will get the Emeralds. I have the advantage now."<br>"You mean Tails." Jason said. "Right?"  
>Wave smiled.<br>"What have you done with him?" Jason asked.  
>"He's safe. As long as he does what I say, he should be fine. I think he finally understands that. It just took a little motivation."<br>"Motivation? Such as?"  
>"Let's just say I think that he didn't want a broken arm." Wave said.<br>"You almost broke his arm?" Jason asked, surprised.  
>"Well... crushed. But it's the same thing."<br>Jason spun around and grabbed her by the throat, pinning her against the side of a building.  
>"He's only eight years old, Wave. Eight. How could you hurt him?"<br>"Oh, it was easy." she said. "He wouldn't cooperate."  
>"I can't believe you. I can't believe you would actually do that."<br>"Well, I did. So get over it."  
>"How is he now?"<br>"He's fine. Nothing broken and in perfect health."  
>Jason released his grip. "Good." he said calmly.<br>"You have a strong grip when you're angry, Jason." Wave said, feeling her neck. "You should learn to use that to your advantage."  
>"Whatever." Jason said. "I gotta get back." He turned around and headed back to the bank. "You comin'?" he asked, looking behind him. Wave was gone.<p> 


	15. Chapter 15

"Nice walk?" Sonic asked as Jason entered the bank.  
>"It was... awkward." Jason replied. "Anyone make an attempt for the Emerald?"<br>"Nope." Silver said. "The only other person who's actually been in here is you."  
>"So no one's taken the Emerald yet?" Jason asked.<br>"Nope." Sonic said. "No one."  
>"Then let's go get it." Jason said heading for the large door.<br>When they got down to where the Emerald was supposed to be they saw that it wasn't. The glass case it was in wasn't on the pedestal. It was on the floor in pieces.  
>"NO!" Jason shouted.<br>"Well, that's not good." Silver said.  
>"We failed again... somehow." Jason said. "Now they have four."<p>

"Did you get it?" Wave asked, entering Shadow's hideout.  
>"You bet." he said, holding up the Blue Emerald.<br>"Not sure how you got it but I'm glad you did."  
>"I have to hand it to you Wave." Shadow said. "That 'I want to go for a walk' thing was a pretty good idea. I had a feeling that if I had used Chaos Control with that kid there, he would've sensed it. He's not as weak as I originally thought."<br>"He's weak against me." Wave said.  
>"I can imagine." Shadow said.<br>"Now what?" Wave said.  
>"We'll get the Emerald in the desert." Shadow said.<br>"The Mojave desert?" asked Wave. "How do we get there?"  
>"That's where Jason comes in." Shadow said. "Make him help us."<br>"How?"  
>"You'll find a way." Shadow said, and walked off.<p>

Wave returned to the abandoned garage where she had worked on the Freedom Fighter van back before the fight with Zephiles... and before she became Wave The Dark Swallow. Tails was locked in one of the rooms. Wave opened the door and stepped in.  
>"How are you?" sh asked him.<br>"You're kidding, right?" Tails asked. He was sitting in a chair.  
>Wave smiled. "Guess what? We're going to go see Jason at your pathetic little base. How's that sound?"<br>"Are you serious?" Tails asked, feeling a sense of joy. "We're going back?"  
>"He's gonna help me find the rest of the Emeralds."<p>

It was freezing outside and on top of that, it began to rain hard. Jason and the others got back to headquarters to find Wave sitting on the front steps and Tails standing next to her.  
>"Tails!" Sonic shouted happily.<br>"Sonic!" Tails also shouted happily.  
>The ran to greet each other. Jason, Blaze, and Knuckles approached Wave. Jet and Silver kept their distance.<br>"What do you want?" Blaze asked.  
>"I need your help." Wave said. "I need to get to the Mojave Desert."<br>"Really?" Jason asked. "Because you want the Emerald. If I remember correctly, I think that's the Light Blue Emerald."  
>"I already have four, Jason. You're losing. So will you help me get all seven, or not?"<br>"Of course he wo-" Knuckles started to say.  
>"I'll do it." Jason said, cutting him off.<br>"What?" Wave, Knuckles, and Blaze all asked at once.  
>"I'll do it." Jason repeated.<br>"Excellent." Wave said, standing up. "I'll be back tomorrow morning. We start our journey then."  
>She started to walk away.<br>"You know..." Jason said. Wave stopped and turned around. "if you want... you could... sleep here."  
>"Are you crazy?" Blaze whispered through clenched teeth.<br>"You sure about that, Jason?" Wave asked. "You actually trust me enough that you're willing to let me sleep here?"  
>"Sure." Jason said. "You can have your old room. It'll be like old times."<br>Wave smiled and headed back to headquarters. "Like old times, Jason. Like."


	16. Chapter 16

Jason made his way to his room but was stopped by Blaze.  
>"I don't like this." she said.<br>"What's wrong?" he asked.  
>"What do you think?" Blaze asked. "I don't want her here."<br>Wave heard them talking from her room so she crept to her door to listen.  
>"Relax, Blaze." Jason said.<br>"Relax? How can I relax knowing that I could be killed at any moment?"  
>"I think you're overreacting."<br>"Overreacting? She's tried to kill us numerous times. What makes you think she won't now?"  
>"I trust her."<br>Blaze didn't say anything. She just sighed.  
>"Fine. She can stay. But I still don't like it."<br>"No one said you have to."

The next morning, everyone but Wave gathered downstairs.  
>"Today's the day." Jason announced. "We ready?"<br>"Why are we helping her?" Tails asked.  
>"He has a point." Knuckles said. "She's the enemy."<br>"She really scares me." Tails said. "I'm actually afraid of her."  
>"That makes two of us." Silver said.<br>"Don't worry. I have it under control." Jason reassured them.  
>"That makes me feel a whole lot better." Blaze said.<br>"Have I ever let you down before?" he asked.  
>"Well..." Blaze said. "no."<br>"Exactly." Jason said.  
>"Why are we all standing around?" Wave asked, coming down the stairs. She was carrying her E-Gear. "We've got a job to do."<br>"We were waiting for you." Jason said.  
>"Well the waits over." she said. "Let's go."<br>She headed out the door and Jason followed. They were up in the sky a few seconds later, heading for the Mojave Desert. After what seemed like forever, they were there.  
>"My sensor is detecting the Emerald in..." Tails said. Then he pointed. "that direction."<br>"Then let's go." Wave said.  
>They started walking off toward the Emerald. Tails was walking beside Wave. He looked up at her. When she looked down, he adverted his eyes and continued looking straight ahead.<br>"Do I make you nervous?" she asked him. "Huh? You scared of me?"  
>"Wave." Jason said, walking beside her. "Leave him alone."<br>"Lighten up, Jason." she said. "Just havin' some fun."  
>"Fun is okay but not when you're frightening one of your team members. We need everyone to be alert and ready for anything. If they're scared, that's not gonna happen."<br>"Fine, I'll stop." she said.  
>"Thank you." Jason said. "So are we close, Tails?"<br>"Y-yeah. It's just up here."  
>They stopped walking when they saw something shining, hovering above the sand.<br>"The Chaos Emerald!" Wave shouted.  
>Then the sand started to swirl underneath the Emerald and a giant black scorpion emerged. It was a little smaller than Zephiles but was still huge.<br>"Where'd that come from?" Wave asked.  
>"Mephiles must've sent out this scorpion to try to stop us." Jason said. "When it sensed the Emerald, it must've come here to guard it and stop us."<br>"Well, that's just great." Wave said. "Looks like we're gonna have to team up to take this thing down."  
>"Looks like it." Jason said.<br>Jason and Wave took a few steps toward the scorpion. It raised its tail and slammed it down. Wave and Jason jumped to the side to dodge it. The scorpion picked its tail back up and swung it. Jason dropped to the ground and Wave jumped over it.  
>"How do we attack this thing?" Jason asked.<br>"How should I know?" Wave asked. "You're the hero."  
>The scorpion raised its claws and snapped at the air. Jason ran at it, drawing his sword. The Dark Scorpion threw its tail forward and wrapped around Jason's waist. It squeezed him, causing him to drop his sword, and raised him in the air. It brought its claws up and opened them.<br>"Not good." Jason said.  
>The scorpion brought its claws closer to Jason. Wave summoned both of her swords and threw one at each claw. They stabbed through the scorpion's skin and it dropped Jason. He landed and dove for his sword.<br>"What took you so long?" he asked.  
>"Why'd you get caught?" Wave asked.<br>Blaze decided it was time for action. She launched fireballs at the scorpion's head. It put its claws in front of its head to block the attacks.  
>"That's good, Blaze!" Jason said. "Keep doing that!"<br>"No problem!" Blaze shouted, continuing to launch fireballs.  
>Jason and Wave ran underneath the scorpion. Jason stuck his sword in the air, cutting the scorpion's belly but not all the way through. The Dark Scorpion swung around and slammed its claw into Jason and Wave, knocking them over. It grabbed Blaze with its tail and slammed her into the ground in front of its head. Jason jumped onto its back as it raised its claws above Blaze, closed, ready to stab her. Jason raised his sword and dug it into the scorpion's head as far as he could. The scorpion released its grip on Blaze, who crawled out of the way as the scorpion's claws crashed down, along with the rest of it. It didn't move.<br>"You did it." Wave said, retrieving the Emerald. "I'm impressed."  
>"Oh, that means a lot coming from you." Jason said sarcastically, jumping of the Dark Scorpion's back.<br>"Listen," Wave said, turning and approaching Jason. "just because I'm bad doesn't mean I don't have the ability to give a compliment."  
>"Whatever." Jason said, walking past her. "Let's just get to the next location."<br>Wave let out a sigh, turned around, and followed him back to the group. A minute later, they were all airborne again, off to the Amazon. Five Chaos Emeralds have been found and only two remained.


	17. Chapter 17

They returned to the sky. Wave was looking at the Emerald.  
>"It's pretty, isn't?" she asked, not really caring if anyone answered or not.<br>"Oh, yeah." Jason said sarcastically. "It's weird to see you're still interested in the little things like beauty."  
>"Look, Jason." Wave said, lowering the Emerald. "Just because I'm not with your pathetic little group doesn't mean I've changed."<br>"Really?" Jason asked. "You haven't changed?"  
>"Not about how I feel about other things." Wave said. "Dew glistening on a leaf, a butterfly, and the smell of that pie shop on the corner of the street. I still notice things like that."<br>"How unfortunate for us." Jason said.  
>"Yeah." Wave agreed.<br>Couple minutes later, they heard a screeching noise.  
>"Anyone else hear that?" Knuckles asked.<br>"How could we not?" asked Jet.  
>They heard the screech again, only this time it was closer.<br>"Where's it coming from?" asked Blaze.  
>"It sounds like it's coming from..." Jason said, stopping to look at Wave.<br>She looked at him as well and then the two of them looked up. A giant fiery bird shot of the skies above them.  
>"Evasive maneuvers, NOW!" yelled Jason.<br>Everyone scattered, dodging the wings from the bird. It looked like a phoenix.  
>"Must be the Dark Phoenix." Wave said.<br>"How do you know that?" asked Jason, dodging an attack from the phoenix's claws.  
>"I remember hearing Mephiles mention three creatures he sent out to protect the Chaos Emeralds from you guys." Wave answered.<br>"But how could Mephiles have known that... we... would..." Jason thought about it. "He was right. Mephiles was right."  
>"What was he right about?" asked Blaze.<br>"He said every move we make has already been planned." Jason answered. "He must've been periodically looking into the future to see what we would end up doing."  
>"I hate Mephiles so much." said Silver.<br>"We all do." Tails said.  
>The phoenix swooped at Jason. He dodged it and the Dark Phoenix disappeared into the clouds.<br>"Where'd it go?" Knuckles asked, looking around.  
>"Wait for the screech." Jason said.<br>They heard a screech and the phoenix dove from the clouds. Jason was ready. As the Phoenix passed, he swung his sword, cutting the bird's mouth. It screeched in pain and took off upwards.  
>"Let's find that Emerald and get out of here." Blaze said.<br>"What's wrong, Blaze?" Wave asked. "Afraid of a bird?"  
>"I just don't want any one of my friends to get hurt." Blaze said. "That was something you used to care about, too."<br>"What is it with you guys and the term 'used to'?" Wave asked. "Let go of the past and live in the now. And right now, we're being hunted by a phoenix. So, let's get the Emerald and defeat this thing."  
>"If that's how you want it." Jason said.<br>"We're here." Tails said, looking at his tracking device.  
>Jason immediately dropped off his board and disappeared through the clouds below.<br>"Hey!" Blaze said. "Wait for us!"  
>The rest of the team took off, on their boards, after him. Jason landed on top of what remained of a temple. He was lucky the roof was flat. The others were getting closer. Jason looked around and, at the far end of the temple roof, was the Yellow Emerald.<br>"Too easy." Jason said, taking a step towards the Emerald.  
>"JASON!" Blaze yelled. "LOOK OUT!"<br>The Dark Phoenix landed between Jason and the Emerald. It raised its head and tilted it backwards, letting out an ear-piercing screech. The rest of the group landed next to Jason, dropping their E-Gears. The phoenix swiped the air in front of it with one of its giant wings. Dark energy flew towards Jason. He jumped to the side as the attack hit the ground. Jason ran towards the phoenix.  
>"Well, he's brave." Blaze said.<br>Wave smirked. "Brave... or very foolish."  
>Blaze shot her a look. Jason dodged another Dark Attack from the Phoenix. Jason launched an onslaught of fireballs. They all impacted the great bird but didn't seem to do nearly as much damage as Jason had hoped. But apparently it did enough to anger the Dark Phoenix. It let out a screech and returned to the skies.<br>"Coast is clear." Wave said. "Go for it!"  
>Jason ran for the Emerald. Then he heard a screech as the Dark Phoenix came crashing back down.<br>"How are we going to defeat it?" Sonic asked.  
>"I don't know." Tails said. "I hope Jason figures it out soon, though, or we may never make it back."<p> 


	18. Chapter 18

The Phoenix opened its mouth and shot two dark energy spheres at Jason, who blocked them both with his sword. The impact from both hits almost knocked him over. He launched two fireballs at the Phoenix. They didn't do much. Jason ran at it again. The Dark Phoenix slammed its talons down in an attempt to crush Jason, but he jumped to the side as the claws came down. The Phoenix swung its wing at Jason, knocking him into a pillar. Blaze ran over to help him.  
>"This isn't getting us anywhere." Jason said getting up. "We need a new strategy."<br>"Like what?" Blaze asked. "This bird is huge."  
>"We beat the scorpion." Jason said. "That was big, too. And it only took you, me, and Wave to beat it."<br>"Then let's do it again." Wave said approaching them. "This is going on for far too long."  
>The Phoenix launched an energy sphere at Wave. Jason pulled her out of the way as the sphere struck the ground.<br>"Don't think I owe you one." Wave said, walking towards the Phoenix.  
>"Wave, be careful." Jason said.<br>"Don't worry about me." Wave said, summoning her swords. "I know what I'm doing."  
>She ran at the Dark Phoenix with both swords at her side. The Phoenix raised its wings and started gust from it stopped Wave in her tracks. To keep from flying backwards, she jammed her swords into the roof of the temple.<br>"What would happen if she let go?" Blaze asked. Jason gave her a look. "What?" she asked.  
>Jason held up his sword and took careful aim. Wave's grip on her swords was starting to slip. Jason saw this and ran to help. The Phoenix flapped its wings faster. Wave lost her grip and tumbled backwards. Jason ran after her and got to her as she was about to fall off the edge. He slid on the ground and grabbed Wave's hand, making her hang over the edge.<br>"Don't you dare let go." Wave said."  
>"Don't worry." Jason said. "I won't."<br>The Dark Phoenix stopped flapping its wings and started on its approach.  
>"It's coming." Jason said.<br>The Phoenix kept moving closer and closer. Jason suddenly had and idea. He quickly let go of Wave, rolled over on his back, and grabbed Wave's wrist again.  
>"Hey!" Wave yelled. "Watch it!"<br>Jason held his sword out and aimed. The Phoenix was getting closer and closer. "If you're gonna do something, do it fast!" Blaze yelled.  
>The Phoenix opened its mouth to launch an attack and Jason launched his sword. It flew through the air and impaled the Phoenix through the mouth. It flapped its wings about frantically before collapsing to the ground. Jason pulled Wave up and they both stood up.<br>"Way to go, Jason!" Tails yelled.  
>"Yeah." Wave said. "Way to go."<br>"Was that a compliment?" Jason asked.  
>"No." Wave said, walking towards the Emerald.<br>She held the Emerald and looked at it.  
>"Six down," she said. "One to go."<p> 


	19. Chapter 19

They retrieved their E-Gears from the temple roof.  
>"Where's the last one?" Wave asked.<br>"The Bermuda Triangle." Tails said.  
>"Then let's go." Wave said.<br>"We can't just go to the Bermuda Triangle." Tails said.  
>"Why not?" Wave asked.<br>"He's right." Jason said.  
>"What's the problem?" Wave asked.<br>"Don't you know your geography?" Jason asked. "Ships and planes disappear in that area. A boat goes in and it don't come out."  
>"Why?" Wave asked.<br>"No one knows for sure." Jason said. "There's something in the water that screws up all electrical devices."  
>"These E-Gears would immediately stop working." Tails said. "If we go back to headquarters, I can fix up the Sky Shadow to be able to not be affected by the Bermuda Triangle's EMP."<br>"What's the Sky Shadow?" Jason asked.  
>"It's a drop ship the military gave us to use on missions." Tails answered.<br>"Where is it?" Jason asked.  
>"Underground."<p>

They arrived back at headquarters and Tails led the group to a metallic door. He punched in a code on the key pad next to the door and it slid open. They headed down a flight of stairs and found themselves staring at an underground hangar.  
>"This place is huge." Blaze said.<br>"And this is the Sky Shadow." Tails said, standing in front of a large ship.  
>The thing was huge. It had two large boosters on the back and wings that stuck out near the top, both with a rocket launcher.<br>"This thing looks like a doomsday ship." Jason said.  
>"Then it's a good thing it's ours." said Blaze.<br>"It'll take the rest of the day to fix it up." Tails said. "We can resume our search for the final Chaos Emerald tomorrow."  
>Jason turned to Wave. "You okay with that?"<br>She looked at him. "Since when was I in charge?"  
>"Since you forced us to help you find the Emeralds." Jason answered.<p>

Later that night, Jason went down to the bar and set a kettle, full of water, on the stove. He turned it on and turned up the heat. He sat down on a stool and waited. The kettle started to whistle so he turned the stove off and poured himself a glass.  
>"What're you doing up so late?" Blaze asked, coming down the stairs. She stopped in front of Jason.<br>"My guess is he couldn't sleep." Wave said, approaching them.  
>"What do you want?" Blaze asked.<br>"Same reason as Jason." Wave said. "Couldn't sleep."  
>"Nightmares?" Blaze asked.<br>"What do you know about nightmares, Princess?" asked Wave.  
>Blaze let out a short gasp.<br>"Princess?" Jason asked. He looked at Blaze. "What's she talking about?" No answer. "Blaze?"  
>"I'm from another dimension, Jason." Blaze answered.<br>"Another dimension?" he asked.  
>"Yes. And where I came from, I was a princess and guardian of the Sol Emeralds."<br>"Sol Emeralds?" Jason asked. "What're those?"  
>"They're my dimension's version of the Chaos Emeralds."<br>"So you're telling me that you're a princess from an alternate dimension?" Jason asked.  
>"Yes." Blaze answered.<br>"How could you keep that from us?"  
>"It's not exactly something I go around telling everyone. I just wanna be normal. You know I used to be picked on when I was a kid when I first realized I could control fire."<br>"I bet." Jason said.  
>"Well, this was fun." Wave said. "I'm going for a walk." She turned to leave.<br>"Hey, Wave." Jason said. She stopped and turned around. "Want to come back?"  
>Wave shook her head. "No." She continued making her way to the front doors.<br>"Worth a shot." Jason said, turning back to Blaze.  
>"Look, Jason. I'm sorry, alright?"<br>"Don't worry about it." Jason said. "It's not really a big deal. Just don't think you have to keep secrets from us. We won't think any less of you."  
>"Right." Blaze said with a smile.<br>"Well, I'm gonna try to get some sleep." Jason said.  
>"Me, too."<br>And the two headed off back to their rooms.


	20. Chapter 20

The next morning brought joy. The team, as well as Wave, gathered in the basement where Tails revealed the new Sky Shadow.  
>"It looks exactly the same." Blaze said.<br>"It looks the same," Tails said. "but it can now withstand any EMP blast. We should be all set to go to the Bermuda Triangle and retrieve the last Emerald."  
>"Good." Wave said. "Let's go." She made her way onto the ship. "Haven't got all day, ya know."<p>

They took to the skies and set a course for the final Emerald's location; the Bermuda Triangle. The team was looking out the front of the ship. Wave was sitting at a table in the middle of the room. She was holding a Dark Energy dagger, tip of the blade on the table and her pointer finger on the handle, moving it back and forth slowly. Blaze turned around and saw Wave, who was looking at her.  
>"Jason?" Blaze asked softly.<br>"What?" he asked, looking at her.  
>"Look." she said.<br>Jason looked over at Wave. "That's creepy."  
>"Could you do something? She's freaking me out."<br>Jason sighed. "Fine."  
>Jason and Blaze walked toward Wave, but before they got to her, Blaze veered to the left and exited the room. Wave watched her as she left. Then she smiled and watched Jason sit down across from her. She was still holding the dagger against the table, twirling it.<br>"What are you doing?" Jason asked.  
>"What do you mean?" Wave asked.<br>"Are you trying to freak out my teammates?"  
>"I'm just having some fun." Wave said.<br>"Well, you're idea of fun is creepy. Knock it off."  
>Wave held the dagger by the handle and sat back in her chair. "You guys are no fun at all."<br>"We're almost there." Tails said from the front.  
>Jason looked toward the front of the ship. When he looked back, Wave was gone.<p>

Blaze took a left down a branching hallway, looking behind her to make sure Wave wasn't following. She didn't see her. She turned back around and was about to take another turn when Wave rounded the corner and stopped in front of her. Blaze let out a gasp.  
>"What's the matter?" Wave asked, leaning against the wall. "See somethin' scary?"<br>"No." Blaze said, taking a step back.  
>"Really?" Wave asked. "Then why are you backing away from me?"<br>"'Cause I don't trust you."  
>"You don't trust me?" Wave asked, standing up and moving toward Blaze.<br>"Fine, Wave." Blaze said. "You want the truth? You creep me out. Ever since you came back you haven't exactly been yourself."  
>Wave summoned her Dark Energy dagger. "You should be scared."<br>Then Tails' voice came over the intercom. "We're there and I can see the Emerald below. It's on some sort of platform in the middle of the ocean."  
>"We'll finish this later." Wave said walking passed Blaze, who pressed against the wall to give Wave as much room as possible.<p> 


	21. Chapter 21

Tails brought the ship right up to the platform and set the ship to hover in place.  
>"There you go, Jason." Tails said. "All you gotta do is go out there and get the Emerald."<br>Jason opened the door and looked out at the platform.  
>"It can't be that simple." Jason said, stepping out with caution.<br>He left the ship and cautiously made his way over to the Emerald. He stopped when he got to the Emerald.  
>"This is really too easy." he said, reaching out and taking the Emerald.<br>As he did, the piece of "land" Jason was standing on suddenly dropped beneath the water's surface.  
>"What happened?" Blaze asked.<br>"Not sure." Tails said. "The platform just disappeared."  
>Jason's head popped up in the water. "Guys? What's going on?"<br>"Did you get the Emerald?" Wave asked.  
>"Yeah, I got it." Jason said, holding it up.<br>Just then a giant creature surfaced behind him. It raised it's head and stared at Jason. Jason turned around. The creature looked like something resembling the Loch Ness Monster. For the Pokemon fans out there, it looked like a black, demonic version of Lapras without its shell. And it was insanely larger. Almost like a cross between the aforementioned Pokemon and Godzilla.  
>"Oh, come on!" Jason yelled.<br>"Quick!" Wave yelled. "Throw me the Emerald so you don't lose it!"  
>"What?" Jason asked, looking back at the ship.<br>"Throw me the Emerald so you don't lose it!" Wave repeated.  
>Jason looked at the sea creature and then chucked the Emerald towards the ship. It hit a spot above the door and fell. Wave reached out and caught it. She brought it inside, took a few steps back, and looked at it.<br>"Finally." she said. "All seven."  
>She summoned a Dark Energy E-Gear and held it with her free hand. She turned back to the door but Blaze blocked her path.<br>"And where do you think you're going?" she asked.  
>"I got everything I need." Wave said. "There's no need for me to stay here."<br>"What about Jason?"  
>"What about Jason?" Wave asked.<br>"He's in trouble because of you! You have to help him!"  
>"Don't tell me what to do, Princess. You're not the boss of me. Now step aside."<br>"No." Blaze said, igniting her fists.  
>"You seriously want to do this here?" Wave asked. "Now?"<br>"Scared?" Blaze asked.  
>"You're the one who should be scared." Wave said, changing her Dark Energy E-Gear into a Dark Sword. "This is actually quite a nice turn of events. I finish you and the Dark<br>Leviathan finishes Jason."  
>"The Dark Leviathan?" Blaze asked. "You mean youknew this thing was here?"<br>"Of course. Remember I told you I overheard Mephiles mention it?"  
>"You're going down." Blaze said.<br>She then charged at Wave.


	22. Chapter 22

Blaze threw a punch but Wave moved out of the way.  
>"You're gonna have to be a lot faster than that." Wave said.<br>"Fast or not," Blaze said. "you won't be able to keep fighting with one hand."  
>"You're right." Wave said, holding out the Emerald.<br>A cloud of gas surrounded and covered the Emerald. Then Wave threw the Emerald aside, only there was no Emerald.  
>"What happened to it?" Blaze yelled.<br>"Nothing." Wave said. "You just can't see it."  
>"What?"<br>"The gas covering it hides it from all those who don't have control over Dark Energy."  
>"Guys!" Blaze said, looking at Sonic and the others. "Start looking!"<br>"Right!" Sonic yelled, and the others split up to find it.  
>Wave swung her sword and Blaze ducked.<p>

The Dark Leviathan lunged forward. Jason couldn't do anything but go down. When he was under the water, he saw the Dark Leviathan swim over him. It was pretty big up close. Jason returned to the surface and threw a fireball at the creature. It just dove under water.  
>"Now why did I think that would work?" The creature didn't surface. "Where are you?"<br>Jason dove underwater just in time to dodge to the side and avoid being eaten. He pulled out his sword and drove it into the back of the leviathan as it burst out of the water and returned to the surface.

Wave kicked Blaze in the stomach, hard, and sent her sailing across the room. Blaze rolled over and got on her hands and knees, trying to catch her breath.  
>"Well, this is no fun at all." Wave said. "You're hardly a challenge."<br>Blaze slowly got to her feet and tried to regain some of her strength. "Well, you're the only one with weapons. It's not really that fair."  
>"You know what?" Wave said. "You're right." She summoned another Dark Energy sword and threw it at Blaze. "Catch."<br>Blaze caught it. "You serious?"  
>"You said you wanted a fair fight, right?"<br>"Right, but..."  
>"Enough talking." Wave said.<br>She walked toward Blaze and swung her sword. Blaze blocked it and tried her luck with an attack. Wave blocked hers as well.

The Dark Leviathan tried shaking Jason off but Jason kept a tight grip on his sword. Eventually the leviathan stopped and tried to catch Jason in its huge mouth. Jason stood up and pulled his sword out of the Dark Leviathan's back. He swung at the leviathan's head as it got near but the creature pulled back at the last second. This went on for about three more times until Jason dove out of the way and made his way to the Dark Leviathan's neck.

Blaze and Wave kept attacking and blocking each other's attacks with a flurry of sword swings. Looked like something out of Star Wars. Sonic felt under a table for the Emerald but couldn't feel anything. Tails searched near the edge of the room and ended up tripping over something. He looked down at the floor and saw nothing. He knelt down and felt around until he touched something hard. He felt for the edges and picked it up.  
>"Guys!" he said. "Found it!"<br>Wave and Blaze were in a sword-lock. When Wave heard Tails announce he found the Emerald she used Dark Energy to knock Blaze to the floor. Then she made her way to Tails.  
>"Um, guys?" Tails said.<br>Sonic zipped in front of Wave. "I don't think so."  
>"Oh, please." Wave said, sending out a massive shock wave of Dark Energy that knocked everybody to the floor. She stood in front of Tails. "Hand over the Emerald, fox boy."<br>"No!" Tails said.  
>"As you wish." Wave said, raising her sword.<br>"Hey." Wave turned around and Blaze drove her sword through Wave's stomach. "You left me no choice." She let go of the sword and backed up.  
>Wave looked down at the sword. "Foolish girl." She quickly pulled out the sword and stabbed Blaze.<br>"NO!" Tails yelled.  
>Wave drove the sword in all the way until the handle stopped its progress. Wave leaned in close to Blaze and said, "Did you really think you could have killed me with my own sword? I would never have given you a way to beat me." The sword disappeared and Blaze fell to the floor. "Now to collect what's mine." She snatched the Emerald from Tails, summoned her E-Gear, and took off out the door.<p>

Jason crawled onto the Dark Leviathan's neck. It tried to shack him off and ended up flinging him upward. As Jason's ascension was slowing down, he saw the leviathan tilt its head back and open its mouth, ready to swallow him whole. As Jason began his descent he fired a fireball down the creature's throat, causing it to stick its head in the water to extinguish the flame. As it's head surfaced, Jason had just enough time to drive his sword through the top of the Dark Leviathan's head. The creature let out a loud roar and its head fell along with Jason, slapping the water causing a huge splash. Then the leviathan began to sink, leaving Jason without a flotation device.  
>"Well, that wasn't so hard." he said, swimming back to the Sky Shadow.<br>He pulled himself out of the water and looked around.  
>"What happened?" he asked.<br>"Wave." Sonic said.  
>Jason saw Blaze. "How's she?"<br>Tails looked at him. "Wave stabbed her."  
>"What?" asked Jason. He ran over as fast as he could and knelt down in front of her. "You okay?"<br>Blaze coughed. "Not sure." she said.  
>Jason looked at the wound. "Wow." he said. "You're so lucky."<br>"Lucky?" Blaze coughed. "How's this lucky?"  
>"If Wave had stabbed you a couple of centimeters to the left we wouldn't be having this conversation."<br>The others saw that he was right. The sword had missed her stomach and gotten her on her left side.  
>"I guess that is pretty lucky." Blaze said.<br>"Come on." Jason said. "Let's get something on this wound to stop the bleeding." He looked at Tails. "Does this ship have a Medical Bay?"  
>"You bet." Tails answered. "I know how dangerous our mission's can get."<br>"Nice work." Jason said.  
>He and Sonic helped Blaze to her feet and followed Tails to the Medical Bay.<p> 


	23. Chapter 23

Wave returned to Shadow with the final Chaos Emerald.  
>"Did you get it?" asked Shadow.<br>"You bet." Wave answered, holding up the purple Emerald.  
>"Perfect." Shadow said. "Now all we have to do is bring them to Marek in Mexico and we can finally rule this planet."<br>"We may need to hurry, though." Wave said. "I may have killed one of their teammates so they're probably not too far behind."  
>"No matter." Shadow said. "We'll just finish them offbefore we go to Mexico."<br>"I'd be careful, Shadow. Jason isn't as weak as he looks."  
>"Oh, please. I'm the ultimate lifeform. I can handle anything."<br>"I hope so." Wave said.

Blaze sat up in bed slowly, holding her side where her wound was. It had been wrapped in bandage so it didn't hurt as much. She looked around and was able to figure out that she was in the Medical Bay.  
>"You're awake." Jason said, entering the room. "You okay?" He sat down in a chair next to Blaze's bed. "You passed out on the way here."<br>"I'm better." she answered. "Did you do the badages?"  
>"Yeah."<br>"How did you know what to do?"  
>"After we defeated Mekkaku and I went home, I figured that if our missions were going to get more dangerous I might as well do some research. So I read up on to treat wounds."<br>"Well, it came in handy. Thanks"  
>"Don't mention it." Jason said. "Though I'd prefer it if you sit out the next fight."<br>"You don't have to ask me twice." Blaze said. "How do we know where to go?"  
>"Well, when you distracted Wave, Tails planted a small tracking device on the Emerald." Jason explained. "And we're almost there."<p> 


	24. Chapter 24

"We're approaching the signal's location." said Tails.

"Be ready, Wave." Shadow said, stopping next to Wave. They were watching the Sky Shadow approach. "We have to defeat them...

"...at all costs." Jason said. "We can't let Wave misuse the Emeralds. There's no telling what she'll do with them."

"I'm ready." Wave said, turning and walking away. "Are you?"  
>"Of course I'm ready." Shadow said. "I'm more powerful than you give me credit for."<br>Wave stopped. "Oh, really?"  
>"Just hold them off for a while." Shadow said. "Get them weak. Then the both of us will have the pleasure in finishing them off."<p>

"This fight may be the most difficult yet." Jason said. "Not only has our enemy proven to be very powerful and very lethal but she is still our friend. I hope we can turn her back and not end up killing her. Though we have just witnessed how serious she is by the condition of Blaze." Jason continued. "The condition of Blaze is also a sign that our Wave is still in there somewhere. If she had wanted Blaze to be dead, she'd be dead. I have not doubt."  
>"I hear you." Sonic said. "And you're right. Wave isn't totally lost if Blaze is still breathing."<br>"So, what do we do?" asked Tails.  
>"I'm not sure yet." Jason answered. "I'll think of something."<br>Tails positioned the Sky Shadow over the Emerald's location. Jason and the others grabbed their E-Gears and exited the ship, making their way to the final confrontation with Wave and their unknown foe.


	25. Chapter 25

"Let me go in and talk to her." Jason said, facing his team. "If anything goes wrong, back me up."  
>"Right." Sonic said.<br>"And guys?" Jason said. "Be careful. She didn't hesitate stabbing Blaze. I'm not entirely sure how far she's willing to go to prove herself."  
>"Don't worry about us, Jason." Silver said. "We can take care of ourselves."<br>"I'm sure you can." Jason said. "I have no doubt." He looked at the doorway to the warehouse. "Here I go."  
>Jason made his way to the door and stepped inside. It wasn't completely dark though there wasn't a whole lot of light either. Boxes were stacked everywhere, some piles almost touched the ceiling.<br>"Wave?" he asked. "Wave!"  
>"Looking for me?" Wave asked, dropping down from a stack of boxes.<br>"Hand over the Emeralds."  
>"Hand them over?" Wave asked. "After we just went through the trouble of retreiving them?"<br>"They should be with someone who won't try to misuse their power."  
>Wave laughed. "But misusing their power is half the fun."<br>"Half the fun?" Jason asked. "What's the other half?"  
>"The result."<br>"You're crazy, Wave."  
>"Am I?" she asked, summoning her Dark Energy swords.<br>"We don't have to do this." Jason said, holding up his sword.  
>"Oh, yes we do." Wave said, running at Jason.<br>She swung her swords and Jason blocked one of them while dodging the second. He ducked to avoid being decapitated and kicked Wave's legs out from under her. She fell to the floor but she didn't let it faze her. Jason tried to pin her with his foot but she rolled out of the way and kicked his ankle, causing him to fall, too. Wave swung her sword to her side but Jason laid his sword on his chest, blocking the attack. Wave reached over and tried to get him with her other sword but Jason strategically raised his sword enough to continue blocking the first attack while also blocking the second. With his free hand, he launched a fireball at Wave. She dropped her swords and quickly stood up, trying to regain focus. Jason was somewhat releived it didn't hurt her. He stood up as well but didn't have anough time to react. Wave tackled him to the ground, causing him to drop his sword. Wave knelt on top of Jason and summoned her Dark Energy dagger. She attempted to drive it through Jason's head but Jason grabbed her wrist. Wave placed her other hand on the tip of the handle and applied pressure. To counter the attack, Jason grabbed her wrist with his other hand. Now the two were locked in a power struggle, with Jason being at a disadvantage.  
>"Just give up, Jason." Wave said. "You can't beat me."<br>"I can try."


	26. Chapter 26

"Think we should help now?" asked Knuckles.  
>"Give him a minute." said Sonic. "He's not in too much danger, yet."<p>

Jason struggled to keep the knife away from him. But Wave was surprisingly strong. Jason focused all the power he had and sent out a concussion blast sending Wave flying backwards into a pile of boxes. Jason had to let his power level charge up a bit before attempting to get back up. His energy slowly came back and he slowly got up. Wave stood up and winced with pain. She looked at her left shoulder. The knife was sticking out of it. She reached with her right hand, yanked it out, and threw it to the floor.  
>"Not bad." Wave said. "You're learning to use your powers."<br>"Yeah." Jason said weakly. "I'm getting the hang of it."  
>"Exhausted?" Wave asked.<br>She walked up to him. Jason tried a punch but was still too weak. Wave was able to easily step aside and deliver a blow to his head, knocking him to the floor.  
>"You're starting to bore me." Wave said.<p>

"Now." Sonic said.  
>The rest of the team stormed the entrance, catching Wave by surprise.<br>"HOLD IT!" came a voice.  
>The group stopped and looked around. There was a flash of white light. When the light cleared, a black hedgehog was standing next to Wave, holding a purple Emerald.<br>"Who are you?" Sonic asked, pointing his sword at the mysterious hedgehog.  
>"I'm Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog."<br>"You're the one Zephiles was after!" Sonic realized. "He mistook me for you."  
>"Zephiles?" Shadow asked. "He still mad about me imprisoning him in time?"<br>"He almost destroyed New York." Sonic said.  
>"That sounds like him." Shadow said.<br>"Now, hand over the Emeralds!" Sonic demanded.  
>"Yeah. Right." Shadow said with a grin.<br>"If you won't hand them over, then we'll just have to take them from you."  
>"You think you guys can beat me?" Shadow asked. He was suddenly surrounded by white light. When it cleared, he was holding a large read, black, and gold sword. "Don't make me laugh."<p> 


	27. Chapter 27

Sonic ran at Shadow and swung his sword. Shadow easily blocked it and countered with a kick that knocked Sonic over.  
>"You're so weak." Shadow said.<br>Jason slowly got up. Wave was too busy watching Shadow to notice. Shadow kicked Sonic in the stomach.  
>"Get up and fight!" Shadow yelled.<br>Wave felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around.  
>"Hi" Jason said.<br>He punched her in the face causing her to stumble back. She muttered a low growl and dove at Jason. He stepped aside. Wave landed, spun around, and blocked a punch by Jason. She then grabbed his arm and threw him into a pile of boxes. She went to fetch her swords. Jason crawled out of the pile of boxes and pulled a somewhat large wooden shard from his arm. It was about the size of a blade on a pair of ice skates. He ran to grab his sword. Shadow picked Sonic up by the throat.  
>"You're pathetic." Shadow said.<br>Just then a pile of boxes slammed into him, causing him to drop Sonic. Shadow looked over and saw Silver.  
>"What's up?" Silver asked.<br>Shadow let out a growl. A couple more boxes smashed against him.

Blaze opened her eyes. She noticed that Jet and Tails were there.  
>"Why are you guys here?" Blaze asked.<br>"What good would we do in a fight?" Tails asked.  
>"Yeah." Jet agreed. "We don't know and combat or how to handle a sword."<br>"Plus, someone needs to stay here to make sure you're okay." Tails finished.  
>"How you feeling?" Jet asked.<br>"Better." Blaze said. Hardly hurts and the bleeding's stopped."  
>"Sounds like you could be able to fight again soon." Tails said.<br>"I hope so." Blaze said. "I hate laying here, doing nothing."  
>"I know how you feel." Jet said.<p> 


	28. Chapter 28

Knuckles charged at Shadow and managed to block his attack. He grabbed Shadow's fist and punched him in the face. Shadow stumbled back as another box hit him. Wave and Jason both grabbed their swords and charged at each other. Jason swung. Wave blocked and then swung. Jason ducked and dodged. Wave swung her sword and Jason held up his to block. Wave swung her second sword and Jason caught it with his free hand. Wave jerked it back, cutting Jason's hand. He let out a short scream, dropped his sword, and clenched his hand. Wave swung again and cut Jason's legs, causing him to fall to his knees. Wave stood in front of him and just looked down at him with an evil grin.  
>"Poor Jason." Wave said. "Come so far just to fail."<br>Knuckles threw a punch but Shadow grabbed his fist and slammed him into the floor. Silver threw a metal pipe through the air. Shadow whipped around, caught it in mid-air, and chucked it back at Silver. Silver caught it with psychokinesis. This distracted him just long enough for Shadow to launch Chaos Spears at him, causing paralysis. He walked over to Silver and punched him across the face, knocking him out. Sonic swung his sword and Shadow spun around and blocked. Sonic was almost out of breath.  
>"Give it up." Shadow said.<br>"Never." Sonic said.  
>"You just don't know when to quit, do you?" Shadow asked.<br>"No."  
>"Then let me help you." He knocked Sonic backwards. "Chaos... BLAST!"<br>An enormous red orb of Chaos Energy erupted out of Shadow and filled the entire warehouse, destroying all of the boxes and crates and causing damage to everything and everyone else. When it cleared, the only two standing were Shadow and Wave. Jason was still on his knees but everyone else was out cold.  
>"That was too easy." said Shadow.<br>Wave looked around and then back down at Jason. "You take the Emeralds to Marek." Wave said. "I'll finish them off."  
>"Sure you can do it?" Shadow asked.<br>"Just go."  
>Shadow took one more look at his fallen enemies before leaving the warehouse, making his way to a secret location where he's been storing the Emeralds. Wave knelt down so she could be eye level with Jason.<br>"You knew this was coming." she said softly. "You had to."  
>"Wave..." Jason said. "I..."<br>"You what?" Wave asked. "I can't understand you. You must be out of breath."  
>She grabbed him by the neck and threw across the room. He slammed into the wall. Wave walked over and pinned him against the wall by his neck.<br>"You must pay for what you did to me, Jason." Wave said. "All of this is your fault. You killed me." She summoned her Dark Energy dagger. "Now it's my turn to kill you. Though I don't think you'll be coming back."  
>She raised the dagger.<br>"Wait." Jason said.  
>"I've waited long enough."<br>"You're... you're right." Jason said. "It was my fault."  
>"What?" Wave asked, sounding surprised that he was admitting it.<br>"I killed you. And I'm so sorry. I wish I had known what would've happened if I killed Mephiles but I didn't. I spent the next couple of nights wishing you'd come back. That you weren't really dead, but..." Wave lowered the dagger. "you were. Knowing you were dead because of something I did was the worst feeling I ever felt in my life. Blaze had tried to convince me that there was no way I could've known. And she was right but that didn't take away from the guilt. And then when I saw you at the Museum, I was so happy. I thought you had survived and were okay... but you weren't. You turned into this; a shell of your former self filled with all this hatred and anger. This isn't you. I know that deep down... you're still there. So, please... Wave. Put the knife down and let's go stop Shadow. What do ya say?"  
>"Jason..." Wave said. "I..." She looked down at the dagger in her hand and dropped it.<br>"That's it, Wave." Jason said. "Come back to us."  
>She released her grip and Jason fell to his knees. Wave knelt down and hugged him.<br>"Jason." she said, almost crying. "I'm sorry, too. For everything."  
>Jason hugged her back. "It's okay, Wave."<br>They separated.  
>"Oh, no." Wave said. "Blaze! Is she..."<br>"She's alright." Jason said.  
>Wave let out a deep sigh of relief. "Good."<br>"Now," Jason said. "Let's stop Shadow."


	29. Chapter 29

"I knew it."  
>Wave looked behind her as did Jason.<br>"Shadow!" Wave said.  
>He lifted her off the floor by her neck.<br>"I knew you still felt something for this kid." Shadow said. "I wanted to believe in you, Wave. I really did. But I had a feeling that the more time you spent with this boy the higher the risk that you'd turn back. You're a weakling and a traitor."  
>"You're right, Shadow." Wave said. "I am a traitor. But it wasn't you I betrayed. It was my friends."<br>"You're pathetic." Shadow said, throwing her hard into the wall.  
>"Wave!" Jason yelled.<br>"I'll just kill you both." Shadow said.  
>Jason kicked Shadow's legs out from under him and stood up. Jason tried a kick but Shadow grabbed his foot and pulled him down to the ground. He then threw Jason across the room and stood up.<br>"You guys are weak. Give me a real fight."  
>"You want a fight?" came a voice.<br>Everyone looked at the entrance.  
>"Blaze!" Wave yelled weakly.<br>"Blaze?" Jason asked.  
>Shadow spotted the bandage around around her stomach.<br>"Are you kidding me right now?" Shadow said. "You're already injured. What makes you think you can stand a chance against me?"  
>"Because I have something worth fighting for." Blaze answered.<br>"Blaze!" Wave yelled, grabbing both of her swords. "Catch!" She threw Blaze both swords.  
>Blaze caught them and ran toward Shadow. She launched an attack but Shadow quickly snatched his sword off the floor and blocked the attack. He countered with a kick which Blaze managed to dodge. She attacked with both swords but Shadow quickly held his sword up horizontally and blocked.<br>"I'm impressed." Shadow said. "Blaze, is it? I'm going to enjoy destroying you."  
>He stepped to the side causing Blaze to stumble forward. She managed to find her footing in time to turn around and block an attack. Shadow attacked with such force that knocked one of Blaze's swords out of her hand. Blaze transferred her empty hand to support the other sword. Shadow advanced forward causing Blaze to have to walk backwards to avoid falling. Shadow forced her up against the wall by the entrance. Blaze could feel herself losing her grip on the sword. Then, before she could react, Shadow took his empty hand and punched her in the stomach. The same spot where Wave had stabbed her. Blaze let out a scream of pain and dropped to her knees, clutching her wound.<br>"Like I said, Blaze. How do you expect to win when you're already wounded?"  
>Blaze, with all her remaining strength, stood up, grabbed Shadow and slammed him into the wall. Shadow broke her grip and punched her twice in the chest before knocking her to the ground with a blow to the head.<br>"Blaze!" Jason and Wave both yelled.  
>Blaze collapsed to the floor. The others were starting to wake up. Sonic was the only one to see Blaze collapse to the floor.<br>"Blaze?" he said weakly.  
>"That's it." Jason said.<br>He grabbed his sword and stood up. Shadow watched as Blaze's fingers began to twitch. He started to raise his foot to finish the job when a fireball struck him on the side of his head. He stumbled backwards, looked over, and saw Jason.  
>"We're not through yet!" he yelled. "Not by a long shot!"<p> 


	30. Chapter 30

Jason charged at Shadow at full speed and attacked. The blow was blocked but still made Shadow stumble backwards.

"You're gonna pay for what you've done, Shadow." Jason said. "You corrupted Wave. You hurt Blaze."

"Correction, Jason." Shadow said. "You corrupted Wave when you got her killed. Her anger and hatred wasyour doing."

Jason attacked with full force, almost knocking Shadow's sword out of his hand.

"That's it, Jason. Use your anger to win."

"You're not gonna trick me into turning like you did to Wave so you can just forget it. I can control myself."

Shadow swung and Jason blocked then stepped to the side and countered. Shadow jumped backwards to dodge the attack.

"Finally." Shadow said. "A challange."

The two charged at each other and launched an arsenal of attacks ranging from punching and kicking to sword thrusts and swipes. Both blocking each other's attacks. They were evenly matched. They both swung and ended up in a sword-lock. Now it was a power struggle.  
>"I'm more powerful than you, Jason. It's no use."<br>"Nothing's more powerful than someone with a purpose." Jason said. "I will beat you."  
>"Good luck."<br>Shadow stepped to the side and Jason stumbled forward. He held his sword behind his back to block Shadow's attack. He kicked Shadow in the stomach, spun around, and attacked. Shadow blocked but stumbled backwards. Jason kept attacking and Shadow kept backing up. Jason swung but Shadow jumped back and held up his hands in front of him.  
>"Chaos... BLAST!" he yelled, and a red orb of energy erupted from him.<br>Jason held up his hands to try to hold it back. It was kind of working. As the edge of the red orb hit Jason it slowed down.  
>"I can't hold it!" Jason yelled.<br>Just then a stream of fire struck the side of the orb and Jason looked behind him. Blaze was struggling not to fall down while she launched a continuous stream of fire at the orb. She slowly took large steps forward to try to hold back the attack.  
>"Blaze!" Jason said. "What are you doing? You're hurt!"<br>"I know... what... I'm doing." she said. "Trust me."  
>He looked back at the massive orb in front of him. He was starting to slide backwards.<br>"It's no use!" Jason yelled. "It's too powerful!"  
>"Don't... give... up." Blaze said, increasing the power of her fire.<br>The power of the orb was starting to damage Jason. It ended up knocking him backwards.  
>"Jason." Blaze said. "Please. Get... up. I can't... do it... alone."<br>Jason struggled to get to his knees and looked up at the orb. It was slowly getting bigger. He stood up and launched a continuous stream of fire as well. He greatly increased the power of the fire as did Blaze.  
>"We're still not powerful enough!" Jason yelled.<br>"We'll need to go... full power."  
>"You think you can do it?"<br>"No... choice."  
>"Then let's go for it."<br>They both concentrated all of their energy and increased the power of the fire to its maximum. The orb started to shrink but Shadow increased his power, too.  
>"It's no use! We can't do it alone!" Jason yelled.<br>"You won't have to." Wave said, stepping next to Jason and launching a continuous stream of Dark Energy at the orb. She then proceeded to increase its power to its maximum. The stream of Dark Energy turned pitch black and looked as if it was trying to consume the Chaos Blast orb. The extra power was exactly what was needed. The orb began to rapidly shrink until it imploded against Shadow and then exploded. What happened?, Jason thought. Did we win?


	31. Chapter 31

When the smoke cleared everyone looked around and got back to their feet. Shadow was on the floor.  
>"That wasn't too difficult." Jason said. He looked over at Blaze. "You alright?"<br>"I'll live." she answered.  
>"Wave?"<br>"I'm good."  
>"Not yet." Jason said. "You know where the Emeralds are, right?"<br>"Yeah."  
>"Why don't you go get them and we'll make sure Shadow doesn't go anywhere."<br>"Alright." she said, and left.  
>"What are we going to do with Shadow?" Blaze asked Jason.<br>"Not sure. We'll think of something."  
>Minutes later, Wave returned carrying a black bag. The group got together in a circle and Wave dumped out the Emeralds.<br>"They're all here." Sonic said, sounding amazed. "All seven."  
>"Yeah." Wave said. "Now what?"<br>"Now we turn you back to normal." Jason answered.  
>"You can do that?" she asked.<br>"Well, if only one was able to keep you from dying, maybe all seven can fully restore you."  
>"Sonic?" she asked.<br>"Worth a try." Sonic answered.  
>She stood in the center of the circle and everyone took an Emerald. Jason had to take two. Light started to pour out of the Emeralds and circle around Wave. The light was so bright that everyone had to shield their eyes. Jason couldn't, though, since he was holding two. He just closed his eyes and slightly turned his head. The light filled the room and then faded. When the light had vanished, Wave stood in the middle. At first it didn't look like anything happened... until the red veins on her body vanished and her skin faded from gray to purple. Her eyes turned from red to white and her sharp teeth disappeared. She reached up and felt her beak. Back to normal.<br>"It... it worked." she said.  
>The Emeralds had disappeared, though.<br>"What happened to the Emeralds?" Jason asked.  
>"When their power is used like this, for example, when I go Super Sonic, it causes the Emeralds to scatter across the planet and the hunt starts all over again."<br>"Right." Jason said, looking behind him. "Hey. Wait a minute."  
>"What's wrong?" asked Blaze.<br>"Shadow's gone."  
>"He's gone?" Wave asked. "Where'd he go?"<br>"No idea." Jason said. "Though I have a feeling we'll be seeing him again very soon."


	32. Epilogue

Shadow stumbled into an alley. Marek was standing in front of him.  
>"You failed me, Shadow." Marek said. "And now you've lost all of the Emeralds. You're pathetic."<br>Shadow went in for a punch but Marek dodged and kicked him hard in the back. Shadow fell to the floor.  
>"You're worthless now. But not to worry. I've got another little helper on the way who should prove to be more useful than you."<br>"Who?" Shadow asked, getting up.  
>"Mekka's final experiment. He's being held at the military base and he should be waking up right about now."<p> 


End file.
